Code Geass: Of Nights and Dragons
by Hasuki-chan
Summary: Suzaku Kururugi goes to free the fabled blind princess, from a castle guarded by a fearsome Dragon. However, their fight is interrupted and fate twists, leading to new a set of events(unlike the conventional fairy tale) where the Knight will go on a rescue mission with an entirely different character, and find love in a whole new different place. SuzuLulu. UPDATED Chapter 10!
1. A Brewing Storm

**Code Geass: Of Nights and Dragons**

**Characters:** Suzaku Kururugi and Lelouch Lamperouge

**Genre**: Adventure/ Humor/ Romance

**Rating:** T

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of its related characters.

**ENJOY!**

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Chapter 1: A Brewing Storm

Storm clouds raged overhead as a young, brown-haired man stared across an old rope bridge which crossed a gorge filled with fire.

This 'steady'-looking Rope Bridge was the only thing that connected him to the huge, dark, and daunting castle which loomed over from the other side.

'Ugh…why was I here again?' the man asked himself out loud. He then proceeded to sieve through his memories of the last six months to find his answer.

_His name is Suzaku Kururugi, and he left his village after it had been destroyed by a still-as-of-yet-unknown entity. _

_He became a wandering traveller, passing through numerous villages. During his travels, he was often recruited by villagers to help fight the green, slimy, foul-smelling monsters who lived in the forests, and to help defeat the greasy-haired bandits who threatened the peace of the villages. By doing this, he became well-known as the 'White Knight'._

_As he went along, he heard rumours and stories of the fairest, kindest and most beautiful princess who had been locked away in a tower of the malicious castle in the most south-eastern part of the country. There, she is guarded by a ferocious, man-eating (not really) Dragon, day in and day out. If one wishes to gain the hand of the princess, one has to get past the Dragon of darkness first. _

_Suzaku immediately became interested in the princess and almost fell in love with her from just her many wonderful descriptions. Idiotically brave as he was, Suzaku decided that he'd go to this castle, slay the Dragon, free the princess, and ask her for her hand in marriage. _

_And here he was, standing in front of the infamous castle. Even though, many have tried and failed…_

"So that's why I'm here…_even though many have tired and failed_, huh?" Suzaku repeated, concluding his re-take of the past. "Well, it's too late to turn back now…" he said, clutching the scarab at his side.

* * *

A while later, Suzaku found himself at the other side of the fiery pit of doom, clutching his shirt and panting, holding on for dear life. He never knew that running across a bridge as it gave away underneath your feet could be such a scary experience…

_'Seriously, how the hell did the others make it across? Or am I simply the unlucky one?'_ Suzaku wondered, before making his way over to the huge dark walnut-wood double door of the castle.

Suzaku almost picked up the rusty ring attached to the door and used it to knock, but then decided against it, cause when would a 50-foot tall Dragon ever answer a door, right?

The White Knight thought that it might be locked, but when he tried to open it, it opened slowly on its own, surprising him. Ominous lightning flashed at that moment, and thunder boomed across the sky, almost as if saying 'do not enter'.

However, Suzaku wasn't going to turn tail and run, he'd come too far.

"Pardon the intrusion…" he sang softly, berating himself for it afterwards.

"Wow…" Suzaku breathed as he stepped through the rustic parlour and into the main hall. It was completely dark; the only light coming in was the light from the occasional flash of lightning. The walls stretched up for 60 feet, ending in a dome-like roof above.

"Jip, definitely a fifty foot tall Dragon…" Suzaku re-affirmed, heading towards the staircase at the other side of the hall, which he presumed to lead up to the tower.

"Who dares to enter my castle?" A deep baritone voice boomed through the hall, echoing off the walls and resonating within Suzaku's head. The voice sounded angry, but Suzaku detected an undertone of anguish he couldn't ignore.

"It is I, the White Knight Suzaku Kururugi." Suzaku answered, stepping forward. He looked around him in search of the voice. Unbeknownst to the White Knight, a large figure cloaked in shadows appeared.

"What is it that you seek?" the voice asked from behind Suzaku.

Suzaku spun on his heel and faced the deity of darkness which seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Suzaku didn't know if he should freak out because it was the Dragon that actually spoke to him, or laugh because of its utterly pretentious speech. However in fear of offending the great beast, Suzaku chose neither. He had to get on the Dragon's good side if he wanted to get the girl, after all. So for his love's sake, Suzaku continued the charade.

"Your Excellency, I am but a humble knight who has come in search of the beloved princess's hand in marriage" Suzaku answered with his right hand over his chest as he kneeled in front of the Dragon. He could do at least this much for his bride-in-waiting.

"Insolence!" the Dragon roared and it felt as if the temperature had dropped to below 0 degrees. The Dragon was mighty unpleased with Suzaku. "Are you aware of what you are asking for? Many before you have come with the same purpose, but all have failed. What is it that makes you unlike the rest?"

_'Ugh…'_ Suzaku thought as he dropped his gaze to the floor

_'That didn't go over very well. I even called him 'your Excellency'. Usually buttering some one up like that is step one in getting what you want'_ Suzaku's shoulders slouched a bit.

_'Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to come here, after all, but honestly Suzaku, when have you ever had a good idea?" _Suzaku sighed.

_'Well I didn't really expect him to hand her over on a silver plate, did I? Well I probably did, but now we know he's not going to. There's no turning back now!" _Suzaku thought resolutely as he looked up.

Suzaku's breath caught in his throat as he met with the most beautiful purple eyes he had ever seen. And what's worse is that those eyes belonged to the Dragon.

"W-Well t-the…" Suzaku cleared his throat before starting again "Well then I challenge you to a duel! Whoever wins shall have the princess!" Suzaku stood and drew his sword, sweeping it in a wide arc before ending with the edge of the sword pointed towards the Dragon's throat.

* * *

The Dragon's eyes narrowed. Normally any trespasser would have been dead already. He just thought that he would try and be theatrical for a change and see a human's reaction to him actually being able to speak.

_'Does this puny human truly think that the can defeat me and get my sister?'_ the Dragon felt insulted. Never has an insect underestimated him like that. He would not stand for it; no one was allowed to insult his ability to protect his dearest sister.

"Very well, I will teach you a lesson in what happens to those who underestimate me, and when you lose it will be your life" the Dragon decided to humour him.

"_If_ I lose; I don't plan on dying today" Suzaku declared as he bent his legs and jumped up, spinning as he closed in on the Dragon's face.

He took his sword and attempted to slice open the Dragon's throat, but the Dragon saw him coming and his claws clashed with Suzaku's sword before it could reach his face. The Dragon thrust his arm outwards, sending Suzaku flying back.

Following this, the Dragon brought his claws forward again, dragging shadows along as he did. Suzaku's back hit against the wall. If he didn't think fast, the Dragon would have his head. Suzaku used the wall behind him as a buffer and launched himself away from it, just as the Dragon's claws hit the wall. Suzaku hit the ground and rolled onto his knees, with one leg stretched out. He frantically looked around and saw his sword lying a few feet away from him.

The Dragon opened his mouth wide as shadows swirled within it. Moving his head back once and thrusting it forward, the Dragon sent the dark magic blast to crash down on Suzaku. Suzaku reached his sword in time and deflected the blast with his sword, but the force was too strong so he was sent flying backwards.

Suzaku didn't stay down long though, as he quickly dodged the Dragon's tail whip and jumped up, aiming to slit the Dragon's throat again. Once again the Dragon blocked Suzaku's swords with his claws. Suzaku recoiled before attempting to strike again, only to be stopped in mid-air. He kept going on the offensive, but could never get past the Dragon's claws. The two continued trading blows, neither side giving way. They were immersed in the battle, only focusing on their opponent, only seeing each other.

Lelouch thought that as soon as the intruder was defeated, he and Nunnally would continue living their (relatively) peaceful lives. Suzaku, on the other hand, couldn't wait to defeat the Dragon so that he and the princess could happily marry.

However, fate had other plans for them, as a high-pitched screamed pierced both Lelouch's and Suzaku's skulls. A scream that the Dragon recognized all too well and a scream which Suzaku would come to know soon as well…

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**A/N:** Thanks for reading! If you like it, please move on to the next chapter -! Please tell me your thoughts, feelings, and stuff you want to happen next! ^^" Thanks to my beta, Icy-Kitty117!


	2. Between the Raging Clouds

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of it's related character.

**ENJOY!**

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Chapter 2: Between the Raging Clouds.

The dragon immediately reacted to the scream and completely dropped his guard. Suzaku saw that as the perfect opportunity to claim victory, but he then realized how frail-sounding the scream actually was.

_'Could it be the princess?' _Suzaku wondered, doing a double take on the dragon _'It must have been, if the dragon's reaction was anything to go by…'_ It was a combination between anger, fear, surprise and panic.

The dragon let out a loud grunt which Suzaku almost translated as a curse in dragon-language. The dragon was looking upwards and Suzaku followed his gaze, just in time to see another large figure flying by outside. All Suzaku could focus on though, was the beautiful, pale, long-haired girl the creature carried in its arms. What Suzaku noticed though was that the girl's eyes were closed.

A great gust of wind almost knocked Suzaku of his feet as the dragon he was fighting seconds earlier flapped his wings once and launched into the sky.

"Oi! Wait, what about our fight?!" Suzaku called after his retreating enemy.

"It won't mean anything if there's no prize, am I wrong?" the dragon called irritably after the young knight, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"That's true, but… Oi, hold up!" Suzaku called after the dragon, who was heading straight towards the small-looking window.

"That window's too small; you're going to get stuck!" When the dragon didn't listen, Suzaku ran up the wall and launched himself of off it, just in time to grab the dragon's tail.

The dragon dipped slightly, but regained his pace with a flap of his wings.

"Hey wait…we're going to…!" Suzaku started, but as he said it, the dragon merely tucked his wings in and smoothly passed through the window with the precision of an arrow.

They flew straight into an angry storm outside. Lightning flashed all around them, the roars of thunder competed with the howls of the wind. Rain bombarded their skins, but still the dragon kept going.

"Hey, don't be crazy, this storm is too dangerous, let's go back!" Suzaku called out to the dragon as his hair flapped around his face, his wet clothes tight around his skin. The dragon ignored him, so he resorted to merely punching the scales, trying to get the large beast's attention.

"Who told you that you could come along?" the dragon asked Suzaku, baring his teeth at the flailing human. He finally broke his pattern of pretentious speech but still held his aura of superiority.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to turn your back on your enemies? See, this is what happens!" Suzaku snapped back

"You mean you become a leech?" the dragon retorted, clearly not amused.

Suzaku wanted to say something in return, but saw that the dragon merely flared his nostrils before returning his focus to the one who has captured his dear sister.

Suzaku followed the dragon's gaze and saw that it was locked onto the dark figure in the distance who was getting further and further away. They were getting further and further away with each flap of the dragon's wings…

* * *

As the dragon stared intensely at the one he was pursuing, his head began to throb. The sudden jab of pain which shot through his body caused the dragon to take a slight dip. His eyes involuntarily closed to the pain. He slowly tried to open his eyes, but the strain caused him to immediately close it again.

"No…wait…" he breathed "don't go…I don't want to lose you, I can't lose you…I won't lose you, NUNNALLY!' the dragon wanted to shout, but his voice seemed to have left him. It came out as a hoarse whisper. He opened his eyes one last time, glaring at the figure in the distance getting smaller and smaller until it was a mere dot.

* * *

"Nunnally…" the dragon whispered, catching Suzaku's attention. He noticed that the ground was closing in on them, or were they closing in on the ground? Worried about what it was, Suzaku climbed his way up the dragon's tail by holding onto the scales.

When Suzaku reached the top, he saw that the dragon's eyes were shut. Whether it was because the dragon was in excruciating pain or if it was because he had fainted due to the fatigue of having been out in the terrible storm, Suzaku didn't know.

"Hey, wake up!" Suzaku had to wake the dragon up if he wanted to live. "We're falling!" he persisted. When the dragon still didn't respond, Suzaku decided that it was the latter of his suspicions.

Suzaku stood up with the idea the idea that he would quickly run to the dragon's head, but it turned into an ungracious staggering forwards. Just before Suzaku was about to fall off, he latched onto the dragon's neck, appropriating the earlier phrase of him being called 'a leech'.

Suzaku saw the dark forest coming closer and closer...he closed his eyes as the sudden realisation that they would hit the ground at full speed in a matter of seconds, hit him.

_'Mom…Dad…Arthur, and Auntie Delicious Choc-chip Cookies, thank you for everything…'_ Suzaku prayed silently, waiting for the clips of his entire life to begin rolling in front of him like a film. The clips never came, and instead he felt something shining brightly on the other side of his eyelids.

_'Was it the gates of heaven?'_ Suzaku wondered, opening his eyes and expecting to see two huge golden gates, but instead the one he was latching onto was engulfed in a purple light and…gradually shrinking?

Suzaku looked back to the forest, which was a very bad idea. He involuntarily tightened his hold on the Dragon's neck, just as they hit the trees. They tumbled through leaves; hit their heads against branches, and sticks poked places it was never supposed to poke.

Just as Suzaku prepared himself mentally to hit the ground at 50 km/h, they came to a drastic halt. Suzaku opened his eyes once again and saw that they were levitating a foot above the ground, and felt an arm holding him around his waist. It was a human's arm. No, more than that, it was a man's arm.

_'Wasn't I holding onto a dragon here a few moments ago?'_ Suzaku wondered.

He looked up at the one who held him so tightly. Two large wings spread out from the man's back, making him look more like an angel of darkness than a demon. Slowly, from the top edges, the wings started to diminish into small glowing lights. Bit by bit, it moved closer to where the wings sprouted from the man's shoulder blades. Once the wings completely disappeared, Suzaku felt himself falling, hitting the ground head first.

The small lights floated around the two, illuminating the forest in a purple hue. They all faded into nothingness; one by one, until both men were shrouded in complete darkness.

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**A/N:** Thanks for reading up till here, I really appreciate it! Keep going - From chapter 4 the chapters are all a lot longer! Also, sorry for any grammatical errors. Please tell me your thoughts, feelings or ideas for further developments and twists you would like to see! Thank you in advance. Hasuki-chan


	3. Within the Dark Forest

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of its related characters.

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Within the Dark Forest

_'Huh…it's soft?'_ Suzaku thought, mind hazy from the fall. He expected the ground to be much harder. Something was tickling Suzaku's nose, and it was starting to itch. He moved his hand to his nose, expecting to flick off an insect, but instead he felt…hair? And it was so silky and smooth.

He opened his eyes, not knowing what to expect. And he was right not to expect anything, because he would never have expected that the hair would actually belong to another person.

'Oi, are you okay?_' _Suzaku asked, probing the person's shoulder.

"Gt…ff" it was a man's voice.

"Sorry?" Suzaku asked softly, leaning in closer. The man turned his head slightly.

"I said get off, you're heavy!" he said, in a gruff and angry tone.

Confused, it was then that Suzaku realised that he was actually lying on top of the other man.

"Oh man I'm sorry!" Suzaku said, immediately sitting up and climbing off of the man's back. He sat on his knees next to the man.

The man slowly came up and sat on his own knees, leaning his head against his one hand. It seemed as if the man had a massive migraine, or he was just dizzy.

"Hey are you ok…" Suzaku asked trying to take the man's hand, but in a swift motion the man swatted Suzaku's hand away.

For the first time, the man looked at Suzaku, hair falling into place next to his face. The man glared at Suzaku, but even if it was scary, Suzaku couldn't look away from those beautiful purple eyes.

"This is your entire fault!" the man snapped at Suzaku, the sound of the voice surprising Suzaku more than the fact that the man was blaming him for something. It was so smooth and clear…and…

"Wait, what?" Suzaku asked, confused.

"If you hadn't started that ridiculous fight which took all my concentration and energy, I would've sensed the intruder who took Nunnally, and I could have saved her! But because of you Nunnally's…she's…" the young man trembled slightly.

"Oh…that…" Suzaku gave a nervous laugh; he didn't know what to say. _'He's kind of right, but…he talks as if he was the one fighting, but then that means…'_ Suzaku did a double take on the man's eyes. _'It's the same shade of purple as the Dragon's!'_ Suzaku realized, flabbergasted.

"Could it be that you're…" Suzaku wanted to ask, but was once again interrupted.

"Everything must have been according your plan, right? You come in and distract me while your comrades capture my sister? For what? Power? Money?"

"What? No!" Suzaku said, raising his voice. "I only came here because I wanted to marry the princess, I had nothing to do with that thing that stole her, I promise!"

The man only stood in response and started to walk away from Suzaku. With no light from the moon that night, the forest was dark, and Suzaku could only see the outline of the man's body.

"You're going to go and save her, right? Let me help you!" Suzaku insisted.

"What?!" the man said, spinning around and facing Suzaku "You think I'd team up with the one who caused me to lose my sister in the first place?"

It was then that Suzaku realized that the man had no clothes on (considering that he was still a dragon minutes ago) and that he was standing in all his glory in his birthday suit in front of Suzaku. Suzaku blushed furiously and looked away from the man in front of him.

"What?" the purple-eyed man asked.

"Noit'snothing Ididn'tseeanything I swear Ididn'tlook!" Suzaku blurted out all in one long incomprehensible sentence.

"What, I can't understand you, speak properly!" the man ordered.

Suzaku gulped and peeked at the man before looking away again.

"You…you're n-n-n-naked" Suzaku stuttered softly, blushing more.

"Ha?" he asked, before looking at himself, realizing for the first time that he was not a dragon anymore and, in fact, naked.

Lelouch blushed slightly before turning away, a slight blush creeping up his face as well.

"I-It's nothing you haven't ever seen before" the rather thin man said, ever so coy.

_'What an adorable reaction!' _Suzaku thought with sparkly eyes. He took that as his cue to be a man. Suzaku stood up and walked up to the man, offering him his coat.

The man merely glanced at the coat before looking away with an 'Hmpf!' arms crossed.

"Oh come on, just take it, you'll be cold otherwise." Suzaku tried to reason, but the man's attention was already somewhere else.

He seemed to be looking at something in front of him, but there was nothing.

_'Or maybe it's just that I can't see it?'_ Suzaku wondered, looking between the man and where the man was looking.

* * *

"How do you know who I am? And who are you?" the young man asked, eyes narrowing at the woman levitating in front of him. She had long green hair and was bathed in a fluorescent light.

"I am C.C, a servant to your sister, my liege" the one revealed to be C.C. answered plainly, slightly bowing before the young man.

"Nunnally? What do you know about my sister? Can you tell me who captured her?!" he inquired frantically.

"Indeed, I have come to inform you that it was the royal dragon clan zi Brittania who, by using your fight with the mortal as a cover, captured your sister."

"Then this idiot helped them after all?!" the man asked, angrily pointing at Suzaku.

"What?" Suzaku asked, confused.

"No, my liege. This young man was ignorant of zi Brittania's plot. In fact, you will need this mortal's help to get to the dragon clan's capital if you wish to save your sister" C.C. said, showing towards Suzaku, who was still frantically trying to see what the other young man was seeing.

"What? I refuse to let that good-for-nothing help me, he has been nothing but the source of my woes!" the young man argued.

"Oi, would you stop talking about me like I'm not here?!" Suzaku said, getting slightly irritated.

"That will not do my liege. With your sister, the source of your power, so far out of range, refusing that man's help is not a luxury you can afford. As you are now, without your dragon powers, you are too weak to save your sister on your own. You need this young man's help."

C.C. left no further ground for argument, and the young man glared at Suzaku in response.

"I must return to your sister now, it's only a matter of time before they find me as well." C.C. gave a bow and started to leave, before turning back one last time. "By the way, I think this will help" C.C. said, and she conjured up some medieval garments for him to wear.

The dark-haired man looked up at the mysterious woman in surprise, who only winked at him, and spared one final glance at Suzaku, before disappearing.

"Is she a witch?" the young man wondered.

Suzaku was still looking around to see anything which looked out of place, but in the midst of the forest they were in, it was only the occasional blinking of yellow-coloured eyes and moving shadows that caught his attention.

"Oi…" Suzaku wanted to address the young man, but saw that he had disappeared.

"Oi, where are you?" Suzaku called, frustrated that he didn't have name to go by. He noticed that whoever Purple Eyes were speaking to, he (or she) knew his name, something Suzaku himself did not even know. He decided that the first thing he was going to do when he found Purple Eyes was ask him for his name.

"Where are you?" Suzaku called again.

"Oh be quiet, you're making a ruckus" the young man said, appearing behind Suzaku. Suzaku jumped in surprise.

"You have to stop randomly appearing behind people like that!" Suzaku turned and reprimanded the young man, slightly disappointed when he saw that he now had some travel gear on.

The young man looked at his fated companion, and the cloak he was still offering to him. He sighed once and took it from Suzaku's hands. Taking the action as a sign that the young man had accepted his help, Suzaku became very happy.

"Hey…" Suzaku called out, and the young man looked at him over his shoulder. "I know we got off to a bit of a bad start, but as you are right now, you are not my enemy. So, since we're going to be travelling companions from now on, don't you think we should start with a clean slate and introduce ourselves again?" He reasoned, laughing sheepishly.

"It can't be helped…I am Lelouch, Lelouch Lamperouge" the young man said, draping the cloak over his shoulders as it fluttered in the night wind, almost dancing to the sound of the young man's name. "And what makes you think we're travelling together now?"

The question brought the mesmerized Suzaku back to his senses.

"Well, it's because…you accepted my offer for the cloak, so I assumed you've forgiven me" Suzaku laughed. "Oh and just so it's fair, I'll introduce myself again. I am Suzaku Kururugi"

It was only for a split second, but Suzaku didn't miss the faint smile which flashed across the man, now known as Lelouch's, face.

"We leave at dawn." Lelouch said, before he and Suzaku walked off into the shadows beyond the trees.

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**A/N:** The last of the short chapters, haha. Thank you for reading and for all those who have shared their thoughts with me, please continue to do so in your reviews! If there's any mistakes left it's probably because I seriously don't know how to fix it, so if you see any, please help me! Reviews makes me happy!


	4. Beyond the Glimmering Trees

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of its related characters.

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 4: Beyond the Glimmering Trees

Lelouch and Suzaku walked slowly through the forest. They heard the night sounds all around them; of the crickets calling each other to action and the occasional solemn hoot of an owl. The forest was so dense that no light could penetrate it from anywhere. An occasional rustling in the bushes kept the two on hot legs.

Suzaku was much more paranoid than the calm Lelouch, and involuntarily walked closer to him. Lelouch noticed this, much to Lelouch's annoyance.

"Why are you walking so close to me?" Lelouch questioned the vigilant knight.

"It's…it's because you asked me to protect you, and in this dark forest, the-the only way to do that is to stay close to you" Suzaku replied with false bravado.

"Let's get two things straight immediately" Lelouch said with a sigh and stopped, turning to face Suzaku, purple locking on green eyes. "One, I didn't ask you for help, you offered and I merely accepted. And two, the size of my personal bubble is at least THIS big!" Lelouch said, dramatically sweeping his arm across his body, the motion sending Suzaku two feet back. "Remember that" He said and walked on.

Suzaku was a bit baffled by Lelouch's sudden action. It took him 5 seconds to register that Lelouch was already three trees away.

"Wait!" Suzaku said, running to catch up to Lelouch. He got a little too close and when Lelouch sent him another glare, Suzaku immediately slowed his pace so that Lelouch was a couple of feet in front of him. "I understand" Suzaku said.

After they continued to walk in silence for a while, Suzaku began to feel cold. He decided to break the ice before it froze both of them.

"So, uh…do you have a destination in mind?" Suzaku asked.

"I rarely do anything without having a plan in mind" _'You're the exception'_ Lelouch almost added out loud.

"Okay, so where are we going?"

"To see the one who will help us greatly on our journey. She is known as the Enchantress of the Forest"

"Oh that's right, I've heard rumors about her. 'Milly' is her name, right? She supposedly loves to throw parties and entertain the animals of this forest here!" Suzaku said, getting excited.

"Correct. She lives in the hollowed-out 'Crystal' tree in the middle of the forest and is the keeper of the Crane Chariots" Lelouch pointed out.

"Crane Chariots? You mean those birds of legend?"

"They're not a legend, they're real, and their involvement in our plan will be very real as well"

"Wow…" Suzaku responded. Not wanting their flicker of communication to burn out, Suzaku asked one more question. "So about this plan of yours…care to fill me in?"

"Yes, I do care. It's not important for you to know now, you will find out as we go along"

'_Oh well, I had to get that question out in the open, anyway. If I don't start talking to this guy, I feel like I'll never earn his trust. But I need it if I want to stick it out until the end, where I'll finally claim my prize of marriage to the beautiful princess!_' Suzaku thought gleefully to himself.

"Oi, get that goofy grin of your face." The heavy smooth voice of Lelouch interrupted Suzaku's day (night?) dreaming.

Suzaku opened his eyes and for a moment he was awe-struck.

"We're here" Lelouch announced.

Suzaku saw the largest tree he had ever seen standing in all its magnificence in front of him. The bare branches stretched far out, almost as if it wanted to reach everyone and everything, even the sky. With no leaves to block their view, the wide band of winking stars arching across the dark sky mesmerized Lelouch and Suzaku.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" a feminine voice asked good-naturedly.

* * *

Lelouch and Suzaku both looked at where the voice had come from. They saw a beautiful woman walking out of the tree. She was very elegant, every stride equally paced. She had shoulder length blond hair and sky blue eyes, supposedly the kind of sky blue you would see the day when there was no clouds. Her cheery smile was like the sun in such a blue sky. Brilliantly bright.

However, there was something clouding the beautiful woman's face. It had a shade of loneliness. Suzaku noticed, that for once, the ever-enchanting Enchantress was all alone.

"How may I help you two gentlemen?" she asked with a smile. Suzaku looked at Lelouch. He doubted Lelouch would care if the Enchantress was alone or not, so it was up to him to ask her.

"Hey, Lelouch" Suzaku whispered to his companion "I couldn't help but noticed that she's all alone…shouldn't we ask where the others are?"

"We have more important things to focus on" Lelouch replied immediately, not really interested in her personal strife. "You're the Enchantress of the Forest, am I right?"

"In the flesh" she said smiling. "My name is Milly, but people refer to me simply as the Enchantress. Never got around to the reason for why that is, though…"

"I see…then, Enchantress Milly, would you be so kind as to lend us one of your fabled Crane Chariots, which can fly through any storm" Lelouch said, bowing his head slightly. He didn't care how much he needed to humble himself when it came to Nunnally.

"Hmm…my Crane Chariot? Well I could, but as you've probably noticed, I'm all alone here, and I do not like it one bit. Now that two rare guests had come along, why would I let them go so quickly?"

"Well…what happened to the other animals; your companions?" Suzaku asked, despite Lelouch's brushing off of the issue earlier on.

"AH! Thank you very much for asking!" Milly said excitedly. "Please, come in and have some of the finest tea you will ever taste!" she said and showed towards the tree 'house'; the hollowed-out space within the tree's huge trunk.

Lelouch wanted to argue that it would be a waste of time, and that she should just hand over the chariot, but Suzaku smoothly convinced him to at least hear the Enchantress out.

They went to sit at the table, and Milly brought a tray with tea cups, a teapot and some cookies.

"Please, help yourself to as much of the treats as you want"

"Then, don't mind if I do! _Itadakimasu!_" Suzaku said and dived in.

Lelouch observed Suzaku's bad table manners and made a mental note to reprimand him for it later. He blew his tea before looking back at Milly.

"So, what happened?"

Milly sighed before going to sit on a chair. She held the empty tray on her lap.

"Well, ever since ambitious Red Dragons stole the Guren Gem, the forest had lost all its 'shine'. A the forest creatures are too afraid to come out because they are afraid about what will happen when the Red Dragon gets its claws on them. It greatly troubles me"

Milly looked from Lelouch to Suzaku and back to Lelouch. She had a feeling that they knew what was coming next.

"I'll make you two strong-looking men a deal. If you can retrieve the Guren Gem from the Red Dragon, I will lend you my best Crane Chariot" Milly offered.

Suzaku and Lelouch's ears perked at this. Both retreated a bit to discuss it.

"Hey Lelouch…this 'Red Dragon' isn't by any chance related to the dragon who stole your sister, is it?" Suzaku asked softly.

"I doubt it" Lelouch answered "I don't know of any 'Red Dragon' in that clan"

"So we won't hear anything from the dragon about the one who captured Nunnally? It would be better if we decline the offer and focus more of our time on finding her, right?"

"Unfortunately, we can't do that. We still need the Crane Chariot to make it through the storm and reach a place which will be able to give us more information on my sister's whereabouts, though I already have a vaguely good idea of where they took her"

"Then, we're accepting the offer?!" Suzaku asked excitedly. He loves helping other people, it's like a second nature to him, and so to not help others was akin to death for him. At least, that was what Lelouch's impression was.

"Yes" Lelouch said reluctantly, and then towards the Enchantress Milly. "We accept your offer" he declared. Though trivial, this mission was nothing but the means to an end to save his sister.

"Wonderful!" Milly said. "I'll draw you a map right away..!"

* * *

"This is the fifth time we've passed that tree with the odd-looking stones in front of it" Suzaku said to Lelouch, whose face was completely obscured by the map he was holding,

"How can you be so sure?" Lelouch asked.

"Because that same tree has had 5 owls sitting on the same branch every time we've passed it" Suzaku pointed out.

Lelouch looked up and saw that 5 owls indeed sat on a branch. Lelouch looked back at the map, and turned it around for the umpteenth time.

"Geez, I've had enough!" Suzaku said, slightly worn out. "The badly drawn map by Milly just isn't helping, and you know it!"

Lelouch didn't argue, but he still took one last glance at the map. Milly drew stick trees and stick paths in multi-colored crayons. It was hard differentiating them. Also there were spikes for mountains and circles for…rocks?

'_Why would something like 'rocks' be added to a map anyway?'_ Lelouch wondered.

"Don't bother with the map and follow me! With my experience, I'll be able to get us there in no time!" Suzaku said confidently. He has travelled far and wide before his meeting with Lelouch, and Suzaku believes that it has made him 'world-wise'. A little forest would be nothing to him, right?

Wrong. Lelouch accepted it because they didn't have a better plan, but even following Milly's map was a better idea than letting Suzaku take the lead. They were more lost than they were at the beginning and almost fell off a cliff once. At the foot of the mountain there was a cave, and there they were; almost at the summit.

"AH this forest is so strange and confusing! How the hell did we get up the mountain in the first place?!" Suzaku asked frustrated.

"I don't know…must have been your 'natural instinct'" Lelouch mocked, but looked away in time to miss the glare Suzaku sent towards him. "But you're right…" Lelouch began, holding his chin with his two fingers, still looking at the map "This forest is strange. It's as if it's constantly changing form to confuse and trap us"

"Wha..? Does this forest have some sort of secret agenda with us?!" Suzaku asked

"It's probably a spell used to protect the forests' secrets"

"Eh? So we won't be able to find the cave?" Suzaku asked, distressed.

"If we were outsiders, yes. But thanks to this map, we're not"

"You can understand that map?"

"Who do you think I am?" Lelouch answered Suzaku's question with a question. "No one can keep any secrets from me"

Lelouch said confidently as he started walking. The drawings of the trees were so bad that it couldn't really be distinguished from the paths, which means it was probably the paths and trees that were constantly mixed up. The rocks however seemed to stay in constant positions. That means that one needed to follow the illustrations of the rocks, and that the spikes that looked like a mountain was most likely the cave. So, judging from their current position, they weren't that far from the cave.

After a few minutes of walking, they miraculously reached the cave. Lelouch amazed Suzaku because the former dragon actually figured the map out, but that didn't mean that Suzaku didn't have skills of his own! He had already resolved to prove himself invaluable to the high and mighty hybrid-dragon.

"Shh…wait here" Lelouch said quietly, and peaked around the corner into the cave. "It looks like the dragon is sleeping"

"Really?" Suzaku asked, his head poking out underneath Lelouch's head. "Oh, could that be it…?" he asked excitedly, referring to the large crystal the dragon cradled in its arms as it slept. "It's huge!" Suzaku exclaimed.

"Quiet, idiot!" Lelouch scolded "Do you want it to discover us?"

"No…sorry" Suzaku apologized. "I suppose we'll have to go in, grab the gem, and dash out immediately."

"No, I doubt a simple plan like that would work…" Lelouch contemplated and looked around for other ideas. "Oh, there! You see those roots (vines?) hanging from the entrance to above the dragon's head? If you swing from those until you are over the dragon, you can grab the gem and quickly swing back"

"Are you sure it's going to hold me? (It could be vines) I'm very heavy, you know?"

"Yes, I do in fact know how heavy you are, and yes I'm sure that it will be able to hold you. Now go on. I'll keep watch from here." Lelouch ordered.

"I still think my idea is better…" Suzaku said with a sigh. Nevertheless he grabbed a root, and swung smoothly from one to the next, until he was almost above the dragon.

'_I feel like I'm being exploited for my athleticism here…'_ Suzaku thought. _'This is such an unnecessarily complicated plan'_ and just as Suzaku thought it, he grabbed something that was not a root. (It was a vine.)

"Sh*t…" Suzaku cursed as he caught the vine, but it snapped, causing Suzaku to fall.

"Oh no, I miscalculated!" Lelouch said coming out of his hiding place as Suzaku fell. Slow motion, Lelouch watched as Suzaku hit the back of the Dragon's neck and bounced off.

The dragon's eyes immediately snapped open, and, faster than lightning, Suzaku was out of sight.

The first thing the Dragon saw was Lelouch, and automatically assumed that it was him who awoke him (her?).

"Who dares disturb my sleep?" the Dragon's feminine (it's a female) voice boomed through the cave.

"Hey, you said something similar the first time I entered your castle" Suzaku laughed.

"Now's really not the time!" Lelouch said angrily as he saw the Red Dragon's tail coming at him. Even if he tried to Lelouch wouldn't be able to dodge.

"Guess it can't be helped…" Suzaku said and he came out just as fast as he had disappeared. He blocked the Dragon's tail whip with his sword just before it hit. "Wanna fight, chibi-dragon?" Suzaku challenged.

"Oi don't go provoking it like that!" Lelouch whispered frantically.

"Chibi-dragon? How dare you?! I am the almighty Red Dragon whose name resounds through all the forests of the world!" the Red Dragon roared.

"Heh never heard of it."

"What?" the dragon sweat-dropped. "Surely you've heard about it in the WestForest?

"Nope"

"What about the east? News travels fast there"

"Nothing. You are really not as popular as you think"

"Insolent fool! My name is Kallen, and watch now as my name will resound across the world after your defeat!"

"See? Now look what you did!" Lelouch scolded.

"What? It's better this way! Just stand back and watch" Suzaku said leapt into the air, sword ready to draw blood.

Suzaku and Kallen fought evenly, matching blow for blow. That was, until the fight moved outside the cave.

Out in the open, Kallen wasn't afraid to use the power which gave her the title she had. With one mighty roar, she let loose a large amount of fire from her mouth.

Suzaku managed to evade it just in time, and with his strong legs, quickly dashed so he was behind the dragon. However, she didn't miss a beat, immediately swept her tail across the ground, leaving a trial of fire as she did so. Suzaku jumped up and aimed to slice the dragon's throat from behind.

Kallen quickly turned her head and aimed to catch Suzaku between her blazing fangs, but Suzaku was fast enough to pierce the top of the dragon's mouth with his sword, and from there launched himself to a safer distance.

"Ugh I can't seem to shake her…" Suzaku said, frustrated.

Lelouch watched silently as the battle progressed. He noticed something peculiar about the Red Dragon, Kallen's, behavior. Despite her being outside, she didn't take flight into the air. Lelouch found it odd that she wouldn't use such an advantage, unless she was protective over her wings for some reason.

'_Could it be..?'_ Lelouch watched as Suzaku came flying back, embers crashing all around him. Lelouch thought he saw something flash across the wings.

"Suzaku" Lelouch ordered "I need you to get into the line of fire again. Literally"

"What? So you want me to die?"

"No. I assure you this will lead to your survival (probably)."

At that, Suzaku went silent.

"Alright...I'll trust you on this one" he agreed.

He charged at the dragon, which was already ready with one of her inferno-flame-claws.

'_There!'_ Lelouch saw it.

Suzaku came flying back across the ground again, until he reached a stop at Suzaku's feet. Lelouch knelt next to Suzaku.

"Listen, here. I've found her weak spot."

"What?"

Lelouch explained. "It's her source of power. Sever that and you'll win!"

Suzaku looked skeptical at first, but the certainty in Lelouch's eyes that Suzaku would win overrode any fears he might have previously held. "I'll trust you on this one" Suzaku said quietly. With one last reassuring nod from Lelouch, Suzaku was up and away.

Suzaku jumped from one tree branch to the next, going higher and higher, higher than he ever went before.

"Come and get me if you dare!" Suzaku provoked the dragon. However she was adamant about staying on the ground, and released another stream of fire at Suzaku from her mouth. It missed Suzaku by a thin margin.

"You won't get me from there!" he teased. Angry, Kallen released a few more 'fire roars'. All of them missed, and with her fiery personality, losing was not unacceptable. And as such, she launched into the air. She flapped her majestic wings, accelerating fast.

Suzaku used that precise opportunity to jump down from the top of the tree, straight towards the dragon.

'_Aim for her wings'_ he heard Lelouch's voice in his thoughts. _'The nerves in her wings are the source of her power. If you severe them, I'm sure she'll go down!_' The absolute faith Lelouch had in Suzaku gave Suzaku the strength he needed to win.

'_Dammit…I messed up!'_ Kallen realized a little too late. In no time, Suzaku reached her. Using the sharp side of his sword, Suzaku sliced the tip of the dragon's wings. Pure magic currents were released into the open, creating sparks which immediately exploded upon contact.

Suzaku and the Dragon were both sent crashing to the ground.

"Suzaku!" Lelouch called, in seconds next to him. "Are you okay?"

'*Cough* It looks like your plan actually worked this time" Suzaku laughed.

"If you're well enough to insult me then I suppose you're just fine" Lelouch laughed good-naturedly as well. At one point, Lelouch was unsure if he had made the right decision bringing the wandering knight along. But Lelouch was happy that he did. Suzaku protected him today, just like he said he would at the beginning of the journey. As much as he hated to admit it, Lelouch owed Suzaku one. "You've done well…" Lelouch said as he looked at the unconscious dragon.

'_You put your faith in me'_ Lelouch offered Suzaku's his hand _'maybe, from now on, I'll put my faith in you as well.'_

"It was thanks to your idea" the White knight said humbly, taking Lelouch's hand and allowing him to help him up.

"But, wow, that Red Dragon was something! 'Kallen', huh? I'll remember that name!" Suzaku said as he went over to retrieve the Guren Gem. "We'll be taking this now. Sweet dreams!" Suzaku said and they left.

* * *

When Suzaku and Lelouch neared the tree, Enchantress Milly was sitting on a piece of tree trunk outside. She saw them and immediately stood up to greet them.

"Welcome back!"

"It would've been sooner if it wasn't for that stupid map you drew" Suzaku chided.

"Now Suzaku, she's not the only one to blame. You almost took us to the peak of the mountain, too."

"Was my map really that bad?" Milly asked sadly.

"Not at all, my lady. In fact it was very clever in the way it guides one around the forest. We had some great scenery"

"When we almost fell of that cliff, yes. Anyway, here's the crystal you requested." Suzaku said, handing the Guren Gem to the unofficial ruler of the forest.

"Wonderful!" Milly exclaimed as she took the gem from Suzaku. "It's even prettier than before! I can you to have taken great care of it!"

Milly went and put the gem on the crystal pedestal in the back of the Hollow Tree. As soon as it was placed on the pedestal, it began to glow in a faint purplish light. The light spread from the pedestal, to the rest of the tree and then to the entire forest. Everything started to regain its 'shine', and the dark leaves from before began to glow.

It was a marvellous sight. Suzaku looked at Lelouch and saw that he and the soft purple light fitted perfectly together. The idea of having to seperate the two, saddened Suzaku, but he knew it had to happen sooner or later because they needed to move on and rescue Nunnally. Suzaku was glad though, because he had the precious memory he could treasure.

Lelouch looked at Suzaku and caught him staring at him. He wasn't entirely surprised, since this was the same goofy look Suzaku had on his face the first time he saw Lelouch. For Suzaku to look at him like that again…must have been because he had some 'eureka' moment, or began to saw Lelouch in a new light, or something…

Since Suzaku was already looking at him, Lelouch decided to say what he should have said earlier.

"Thank you" Lelouch said, surprising Suzaku when the former suddenly spoke "For saving me. If I may, I'd like to continue relying on your knighthood. Also, may the last fight for Nunnally be an honorable one" Lelouch said, and held one hand out to Suzaku.

At first, Suzaku was horribly confused. All he understood was Lelouch thanking him, something about knighthood, the last battle for Nunnally, and that Lelouch was offering him his hand, meaning that for now, Suzaku had some of Lelouch's trust.

Suzaku gratefully took Lelouch's hand. Sure they argued a lot and Lelouch's plans were sometimes crazy, but Suzaku was starting to like the idea of him being Lelouch's knight and protecting him more and more.

"That's exactly what I want!" he said.

All the animals returned, and Milly easily hosted the most extravagant 'welcome back' party in all the Southern regions. The animals, such as the flying dolphin (don't worry, they're relatively small birds with gills as a bonus gift courtesy of evolution), ducks with turtle shells and lion monkeys, gladly joined the festivities.

Suzaku, having not slept since he reached Lelouch's castle, crashed after the first few drinks. Lelouch didn't have the luxury of rest yet, not when he still had important negotiations to make.

"This is it" Milly said when they reached the Crane Chariot stalls. She was reluctant to leave her guests for a matter of business, but upon Lelouch's insistence she couldn't decline.

"Sayoko here is our best girl" Milly showed toward one of the cranes with an interesting brown bob-do. She was a pure white colour, with slightly darker shades of grey here and there. Attached to her back was a type of sled, obviously made from some of the highest quality wood in the forest. A large bird, its back was large enough to carry the entire sled, and it's wings spanned an amazing length at the sides.

"She can brave any storm" Milly advertised proudly. Lelouch looked into the yellow eyes of the Crane. He saw quiet determination in them.

"You are right. I can feel her strong willpower. I'll take her"

'Wonderful!" Milly said clasping her hands together. "I'm so happy she pleases you!"

"Have her ready to leave one hour before dawn."

"Yes sir!" the 'Enchantress' said with a mock salute.

'_I have to rest too' _Lelouch thought as he headed back_ 'It's been a long and stressful day for me. As bothersome as sleep is at a time like this, it's also necessary. What a paradox indeed. Wait for us Nunnally, I promise I'll save you, and when I do I'll make sure you have a safer life than you've ever had before. Tomorrow, one hour before dawn, __Suzaku and I__ will set out; ready to fight whatever storm may await us beyond the glimmering trees.'_

* * *

**A/N:** Thank you for reading my this chapter! Thanks to **A Random Person**, **yuuram2fangirl**, **Guest**, **Suki Akari** and **NessaTheSinner** for reviewing, and thank you for all those who favorite/ followed my story, you guys are awesome and the driving force behind my work! Please tell me your thoughts, feelings and desires, I treasure them! Also, hope the looong chapter didn't scare you guys off, I kind of got carried away writing about the little squabbles between Suzaku and Lelouch, it's so fun! Please continue to review/ favorite/follow, and look forward to the next chapter!


	5. In the Eye of the Storm

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of its related characters.

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 5: In the Eye of the Storm

"Suzaku, we're leaving!" Lelouch called as he mounted the Crane Sayaka. It was roughly around an hour before dawn. A fresh carpet of dew covered grass and plants alike. The last remaining stars were fading, one by one.

"Just wait a minute!" Suzaku laughed. Turtle ducks had tackled him to the ground. They didn't want him to leave and thought that maybe if they smothered him with their little pecks, he would stay, though Lelouch knew where Suzaku's priorities were. Although Lelouch was growing more and more uncertain seeing how much Suzaku was enjoying the attention.

"Hmph, typical…" Lelouch huffed.

"What is?" Milly, who had come to see them off, asked. She looked towards where Lelouch was looking; at a completely subdued Suzaku lying on the ground.

"Just the way the animals shower Suzaku with their innocent affection. Animals and humans are just drawn to him, I suppose. He's the 'very-likable' archetype of character."

At the statement, Milly's ears perked.

"What a completely boring way to say you actually like him!" Milly complained with a dramatic sigh. Lelouch wanted to disagree immediately, but he knew that that reaction would only confirm the statement for Milly.

"Let's just say I _tolerate_ him." Lelouch answered coolly instead.

"Oh…is that so?" Milly said, raising an eyebrow.

"He's very kind and a good kid" Lelouch added quickly, wondering why and of what he was trying to convince the Enchantress.

"Hmm…speaking of good kids, some of mine went on a reconnaissance mission into the Western Sky, but haven't returned since…"she held her hands in front of her chest, looking very despondent.

"Oh?" Lelouch was glad the topic change, albeit to another troublesome one, in which he was unwilling (but probably had no choice), but to get involved in "And why are you telling me this?"

"Geez, you're not cute at all. Normally when a lady sounds in distress, a gentleman would offer to help her" Milly glared fiercely at Lelouch, although it was as ferocious as the glare of a kitten whose milk was taken away.

"Hoh? And you are the lady here?" Lelouch raised his other eyebrow. (Thankfully), before Milly could retort, Suzaku chipped in.

"What are you guys talking about?" Suzaku asked. He had finally managed to get himself off of the ground, although there was still a Lion Monkey on his shoulder, nipping at his hair.

"Oh nothing, my call for help is just being completely ignored, that's all"

"Call for help?" Suzaku repeated.

"That's right. Two of my comrades had gone missing and I'm worried, I'm hoping that _someone _would see to their safe return, but no~" Milly dragged on her 'o', pouting like a little child, hoping that it would amount to something.

'_Missing comrades? That seems like a time-consuming job. It's no wonder Lelouch is unwilling to help her, but it would be kind of rude to turn her down after the hospitality she showed us (although we did actually work for it)'_ Suzaku thought, glancing at Lelouch, who looked away and closed his eyes.

"It's possible that they had been captured and are being held captive in the Li Britannia Palace. Since that's where you're supposed to go next anyway, I thought that you might as well save them" Milly reasoned.

"Well I suppose if we _happen _to come across something we'll see what we can do" Lelouch sighed.

"Wonderful! That's all I want to hear! See, you DO know how to be a gentleman, Lelouch!" Milly's face and eyes lit a like a Christmas tree, and Suzaku and Lelouch immediately knew that there was no turning back. There was no way that they could not help Milly after seeing her so happy.

"Right right" Lelouch said as Suzaku climbed abroad. Suzaku was happy that Lelouch was willing to let the Enchantress depend on him again. It would have felt wrong for Suzaku otherwise.

"Well then, until next time" Lelouch said and he used the reins to let Sayaka take off*

"Bye bye Enchantress! Also, all of you animals take care off Milly!"

"What are you talking about? I'm the one taking care off them!" Milly retorted with a wave. Suzaku grinned widely and returned the wave.

* * *

Sayaka soared high into the sky, until Milly and her companions were mere dots below them.

"Amazing, we're so high!" Suzaku exclaimed as he looked down at the forest. The leaves still shone like crystals, giving the forest an ethereal glow. From above, it almost looked like a heavenly underworld.

"Not really, this is quite a normal height to fly at"

"Oh that's right; I forgot that you were actually a dragon before hand!" Suzaku smiled sheepishly.

"Is that supposed to be an insult?" Lelouch wondered softly. "Anyway I'm just glad we made it out of there alive."

"I know what you mean. That Enchantress' motives seem really dodgy sometimes" Suzaku pointed out aloud "I wondered actually if that Guren Gem was really hers?"

"I think it was, it gave the forest its shine back, after all"

"That's true…but why would the Dragon have taken it then?"

"I'm not sure…probably because it liked the red glow and found a friend in the gem?" Lelouch said in a very serious tone, causing Suzaku to burst out laughing. "What?"

"No no…it's nothing…" Suzaku laughed, and Lelouch left it at that.

Milly told them earlier that the palace was somewhere in the sky, and that they need to be vigilant in the storm. There were Dragon Knights around every cloud, just waiting to apprehend illegal trespassers. Milly reassured them though that Sayaka would see them through to the end. All they had to do was figure out where the palace was.

Lelouch didn't think that the palace would be somewhere in the storm, but rather somewhere above the clouds. However, the clouds were so high that it seemed unlikely for the palace to be in an atmospheric level with less oxygen.

'_So where then…?'_ Lelouch wondered as he looked towards the eastern horizon.

The sky was slowly getting lighter, the sun still waiting to peak its head over the distant plains. But that horizon of beauty was not where Lelouch and Suzaku were heading.

No, they had to go in the completely opposite direction; into the Western Sky where only a terrible dark storm was awaiting them. They had to fly away from the beautiful and into the dangerous.

Lelouch held on tightly to the reins as he angled the crane towards the storm. There was no hesitance in the flap of the Sayaka's wings. There was an unspoken agreement between the crane and the man who if even one of them showed weakness, both of them would go down.

Suzaku envied the invisible bond they had. He wanted to be useful as well. With sharp eyes, he watched Lelouch. Suzaku could tell that Lelouch was feeble in his human form. Lelouch was gripping the reins tightly, but Suzaku could see that Lelouch's arms were strained.

If this was what Lelouch was like now, it made Suzaku wonder if Lelouch would be able to hold out when they actually entered the storm.

As Suzaku was wondering about this, a great gust of wind shook the chariot. For a moment Lelouch lost his balance, and in a reflex Suzaku reached out for Lelouch, but Lelouch regained his balance himself.

'_My heart's not ready for this…' _Suzaku thought, clutching his shirt, trying to calm his pounding heart. But the adrenaline wouldn't slow down for a while. Consecutive gusts of wind continuously shook the chariot. They were getting closer and closer to the midst of the storm.

"Lelouch!" Suzaku called loudly, over the roars of thunder "Let me take over the reins!" he insisted, moving slowly towards Lelouch as to not lose his balance.

"Why do you feel the need to do that?" Lelouch asked back, but even his shouts were strained.

"We're about to hit some serious head wind, and I know that I will be able to handle it better because I'm stronger" Suzaku explained as it started to rain all around them.

"That won't be necessary, I'm not _that_ weak!" Lelouch insisted as the chariot began to rock in the wind.

'_What stubborn pride!' _Suzaku thought with clenched teeth.

"Then at least let me help you in handling the reins!" Suzaku grabbed the reins over Lelouch's hands. The sudden contact caused an unknown sensation to travel up Lelouch's spine.

"I told you that it won't be necessary!" Lelouch said again, trying to shove Suzaku away. Just then a strong wind caused the chariot to tip. Lelouch, who had let go of one rein, lost his balance.

Everything in Suzaku's world slowed to a turtle's pace as Lelouch fell over the rail of the chariot. A flash of lighting lit up the dark sky. Suzaku's survival instincts kicked into high gear.

The last thing Lelouch could see was Suzaku shouting something, reaching out his hands. The tips of their fingers were about to touch, but the greater hand of gravity grasped Lelouch first. A second flash of lighting lit up Suzaku's horrified expression.

Lelouch was plunged through the clouds, gravity unwilling to let him go.

"LELOUCH!" Lelouch could hear his name being called in the distance, before everything around him went black.

"Damn it!" Suzaku cursed as he grabbed hold of the reins and pulled it back. Sayaka was brought to an immediate halt. "Sayaka, we have to save Lelouch! Please, lend me your strength!" at that, Sayaka made a u-turn and nose-dived towards Lelouch.

Sayaka caught up to Lelouch in no time. Suzaku reached out his hand for Lelouch's, but saw that Lelouch's eyes were closed.

'_Just hold on a bit longer!' _Suzaku thought desperately. He tried to will Lelouch closer. As soon as Lelouch was within reach, Suzaku grabbed him around the waist. He pulled Lelouch towards his chest.

With his other hand, Suzaku tugged the rein, telling Sayaka to get back on course. The crane quickly ascended to a higher altitude.

In the far distance, Suzaku could see the clouds opening up to let a great beam of sunlight through.

'_That must be the eye of the storm Lelouch talked about…' _Suzaku thought and steered Sayaka in the direction of light.

"Geez, if you had listened to me this wouldn't have happened" Suzaku said softly to the still-unconscious Lelouch lying in his arms.

Lelouch's damp hair was plastered to his forehead. Suzaku swept the hair out of Lelouch's face as a vast bright blue sky opened up above them. The sun shone down on them, warming them. The water drops which still clung to Lelouch's hair reflected the sun's light, glittering.

In the sunlight, Lelouch's pale skin was even more striking for Suzaku. Suzaku moved his hand to catch the water drop that slid down Lelouch's cheek, when Lelouch stirred.

At first he clenched his eyes, before opening them and blinking a few times. At first, Lelouch could only see a dark figure looming over him, before his eyes adjusted. First Lelouch made out the brown hair, then the green eyes.

"Suzaku?!" Lelouch registered, sitting up quickly before swaying a bit.

"Whoa, easy there. You just fell of the chariot, remember?" Suzaku asked tentatively, stabilizing Lelouch.

Lelouch took a while to gather his thoughts. Lelouch shrugged out of Suzaku's grip and moved away.

"That's right. I was busy flying and then you wanted to take over, despite my protests" Lelouch looked at Suzaku accusingly.

"Right, and now you know that if you had accepted my help, you wouldn't have fallen over"

"If you never offered your help in the first place I wouldn't have fallen anyway"

"Don't try to blame me for this, I saved you!" Suzaku argued.

"Ah right, thank you very much" Lelouch thanked in a counterfeited appreciative tone.

"Geez, if I wasn't there you would have definitely fallen…" Suzaku continued, pouting, but Lelouch had already moved on from their blame game.

He looked on at the distance. Situated high in the middle of the eye of the storm was a Cumulonimbus cloud. On this cloud there was a magnificent white palace. Large glass windows adorned the castle walls. Balconies extended from ever side and on every level. Several glass dome-topped towers rose above the main building and shone like golden beacons.

"We're almost there" Lelouch said.

"Wow amazing, so that's our next checkpoint!" Suzaku exclaimed.

"That's correct. The person living here will be able to give us more information on the whereabouts of Nunnally"

'_Nunnally, huh? Come to think of it, whenever Lelouch and I are not arguing, he only ever talks about his sister. Does he really think of nothing else?'_ Suzaku wondered _'It might be it, although I don't have a sibling so I wouldn't know what amount of thinking about a sibling is considered 'healthy'. Especially if one of them was kidnapped…'_

"Hopefully _that woman's_ not here…" Lelouch added softly, scrutinizing the castle, while Suzaku his lost in his pondering about 'sibling love'.

* * *

"Welcome to the Li Britannia Palace!" the pink-haired beauty said as Lelouch and Suzaku stepped of off the Crane.

"Sorry for coming by announced" Lelouch said as the pink-haired girl walked towards him.

"Not at all" she said kindly and stopped a few feet in front of Lelouch. With her light purple eyes she looked up into Lelouch's slightly darker purple ones. "It's been a long time, Lelouch" she said, reaching up for him.

"It sure has, Euphemia" Lelouch said and returned her hug.

Suzaku felt oddly like a third wheel while in the presence of those two. It made him feel slightly uncomfortable. Suzaku awkwardly cleared his throat.

"You know her?" Suzaku asked.

Euphemia looked at Suzaku for the first time, her eyes lit up, pleased to see the guest Lelouch had brought along.

"Oh, you haven't told him yet?" Euphemia asked, looking sideways at Lelouch.

"There's no need for him to know" Lelouch replied simply.

"Know what?" Suzaku felt that he was being left out of the loop. And he didn't like being the odd one out.

Euphemia walked towards Suzaku and held out her hand to him.

"Pleased to meet you, I'm Euphemia."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Suzaku." Suzaku said, taking Euphemia's hand in his own.

"Thank you very much for taking care of my *Lelouch coughs*

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure…don't mention it" Suzaku said, looking suspiciously at Lelouch, who was feigning innocence.

"Well then, please come in" Euphemia said as she showed them towards the door.

"Pardon the intrusion" Lelouch said as he and Suzaku stepped into the house.

They were led through the foyer and a vast room opened up before them. Despite it having the same layout as Lelouch's castle, it was the complete opposite. Instead of the dark, gloominess of Lelouch's castle, Euphemia's castle was brightly lit, Instead of small windows; there was floor to ceiling windows. The open sky made the room feel even larger than it actually was. Instead of suffocating, there seem to be an over abundance of fresh air. Instead of a raging storm, a calm breeze filtered through the main hall.

"It's amazing" Suzaku breathed, awed by the many glass pillars supporting the castle's ceiling.

"Thank you very much" Euphemia said. She led them up a purple-tinted glass staircase. "My brother, Clovis, is a glass architect. This palace was his life's work." Euphemia explained as they walked down a white-walled and dark purple rugged hall and up another, steeper flight of stairs.

"Hoh? When will we get to meet him?" Suzaku asked cheerfully. Euphemia stopped mid-step. She was silent for a while.

"You won't" she said, and over her shoulder glanced at Suzaku. "He's above us now…" she said solemnly, meeting Lelouch's eyes before she turned her head forward and continued climbing the stairs.

"Above…?" Suzaku looked above them. There was a dome roof above them, with an oculus in the middle. The blue sky was all he could see. "Oh…" Suzaku realized. "My condolences"

"Thank you, but don't worry about it" Euphemia said, masking her sadness with strained cheerfulness.

Lelouch looked up at the oculus, and shifted his gaze towards the blue skies outside. Lelouch never liked blue skies. It was as if their intense blue was always ridiculing and mocking him with its happiness. The intense blue always reminded him of _that day_…Lelouch haven't really ever had regrets. It's just that when it came to the innocent and naïve girl in front of him, he sometimes wished that things had worked out differently. Now all that Lelouch could do was seal himself in the dark clouds of his memories, of despair.

He looked up at where Suzaku was talking with Euphemia, trying to lighten the heavy mood. It was working, and Lelouch felt grateful towards Suzaku. Lelouch looked out the window again.

'_Nunnally would have loved this view…'_ he thought, eyes disappearing under the shadow of his hair.

"I'm sure you know why I've come here" Lelouch stated, taking a sip from the tea Euphemia brought them.

"Of course, what other reason would you have to come here?" Euphemia played along "It's about Nunnally, am I right?"

"The Enchantress told me that if some dragon caught Nunnally then they would've passed through here, since you can't easily go through the skies ahead without bumping into _her_…"

"That's right, Milly's quite a sharp one" Euphemia laughed before turning serious "It's true, Nunnally did come through here."

"So it's true?" Lelouch stood up eagerly. "Did you see who it was? Where are they headed? And more importantly, is Nunnally hurt?"

"Slow down, Lelouch, try as I might I can still only answer one question at a time"

At that Lelouch sank back into his seat.

"It was a Wind Dragon who came through here. He bore the seal of the second-in-command of the Dragon Clan."

"So it was _him_…"

"Yes, and as such I'm sure you know where the dragon's going…"

"Pendragon" Lelouch and Euphemia said in unison.

At that, Lelouch sighed. The green witch had been correct. That greatly troubled Lelouch. How did she know the Dragon's end destination? Could she have been their accomplice? What if it was all just a trap to lure him in?

'_No' _Lelouch reprimanded himself. _'I can't afford to think of all the worst case scenarios now. Nunnally needs me and __there's __only one path I can take to save her!' _

While Lelouch was busy amping himself up, Suzaku scooted closer to Euphemia.

"Has Lelouch always been this crazy about his sister?" he asked in a whisper.

The questioned amused, more than surprised, Euphemia.

"Haven't you noticed yet?" she asked, holding her hand over her smiling mouth.

"All I've noticed is that, whenever Lelouch and I are not arguing, it's always Nunnally this or Nunnally that"

"Yes, that!"

"But what about it? I don't have a sibling so I wouldn't know if that amount of love is healthy or not" he asked, looking down in shame of his ignorance.

"No, I wouldn't say that amount of love is 'healthy'. In fact, we like to refer to people like Lelouch as having somewhat of a 'sister-complex'"

"A sister-complex? What is that?"

Euphemia's eyes glinted mischievously.

"Oh I think you would understand it better if you asked the man himself" Euphemia said, pointing at Lelouch.

"? Alright" Suzaku scouted back to the side of the sofa which was closer to the armchair Lelouch was sitting on.

"Hey, Lelouch…" Suzaku probed Lelouch, bringing his thought train to an unpleasant halt.

"What is it?" he asked, slightly irritated.

"Ne…Euphemia tells me you have a sister complex, but I don't know what it is, so could you maybe explain it to me?"

There were two things in the present situation that grinded Lelouch's gears. The first was that Suzaku was really more ignorant than Lelouch thought at first and had the gall to ask Lelouch something like that so innocently. The second thing was that Euphemia actually told Suzaku that Lelouch had a sister complex. Euphemia, of all people! Lelouch wouldn't stand for it.

"A sister complex? Me? That's ridiculous!" Lelouch said, standing up and marching towards Euphemia who was sitting opposite him. "If anyone has a sister complex, it's this girl over here!" he said, and pointed towards her.

"Me? Why do you say that?" Euphemia asked, seemingly unfazed by Lelouch's outburst.

"You always seek Cornelia's approval and affection! And she dotes on you even more! The amount of love between you is more than normal!"

"How uncouth!" Euphemia said, standing up for herself.

"Guys, its okay, no need to fight, I think I understand what a sister complex is now…" Suzaku tried to calm the fire.

"No, this _princess _needs to know that she can't just randomly refer to people as having sister complexes"

"Wait, 'princess'?" Suzaku was completely lost.

"It's not random! You love Nunnally to bits" Euphemia persisted.

"Did I miss something?" Suzaku thought worriedly.

"And you Cornelia…"

"OH PRINCESS!" Suzaku exclaimed and fell on his right knee in front of Euphemia, effectively shutting both of them up. "Please forgive me for my earlier rudeness, I had no idea you were a princess!" Suzaku bowed his head in shame.

"Eh?" Euphemia was more than a bit surprised. "It is okay, Suzaku. You didn't ask so I didn't say anything. It's not like I proclaim the fact that I'm a princess to the world, you know?"

"Please forgive me!"

"Right right I forgive you, now please rise" Euphemia said, moving her hands to calm Suzaku.

"You really didn't suspect anything from the huge royal-looking castle?" Lelouch asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, sorry I didn't put two and two together like that, okay?" Suzaku said, all teary-eyed.

Lelouch walked up to Suzaku and patted his head. Lelouch didn't really blame Suzaku for not noticing, and he was actually glad that Suzaku hadn't realized anything up until now. Him freaking out was enough to stop the argument from going in circles (which may or may not have been Lelouch's plan from the first time he mentioned that Euphemia was actually a princess.)

"Now that we've got that out of the way, I actually have a second request for you, Euphemia…"

Euphemia looked from Suzaku, who had calm down a bit since Lelouch patted Suzaku's head as if the brown-haired male had been a good kid, to Lelouch.

She kind of knew what task he had in mind for her…

* * *

"Gilford, are there any reports?" A purple-clad mature woman asked her glasses-wearing dark haired subordinate. They were both sitting strapped into saddles which rested on the backs of large dragons.

"Yes, my lady. I was informed that Princess Euphemia had received two visitors a while ago."

"Verification?"

"None, my lady. It seems that they did not go through the regular channels to obtain access to these skies"

"Odd" She cupped her chin in 'the thinker'-fashion "How did they reach the palace? These storms are not supposed to be so easy to pass through"

"I have been informed that the visitors arrived on a Crane Chariot"

"A Crane Chariot? Those infamous birds said to be able to brave any storm? I believe that they are only attainable in the forests to the east, which means…"

"It's probably as we suspect. He has arrived"

"Tsk" she clenched her teeth "Slipped through right under my nose…my knights, head for the castle and apprehend Lelouch!"

"Yes, Commander Cornelia!" the knights chanted, all together heading in the direction of the palace.

"You won't escape this time!" Cornelia silently vowed, as she also ordered her dragon to return to the palace.

* * *

**A/N: **Hey guys, thank you for reading, I really appreciate it :) Thanks a mil to my beta, Icy-Kitty117 she always helps me out a lot!

Thank you also for A Random Person, Guest, Yuuram2fangirl, InsanePurpleLove, AzulTheBlueDragon and SukiAkari for reviewing, and for all those who followed/favorite my story!

Please tell me your thoughts, feelings, qualms and/or desires for the story, because at this point _'Anything can happen, anything can happen'_ ;)

'Till next time, Hasuki-chan out!


	6. Down the One-Way 'Street'

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of it's related characters.

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 6: Down the One-Way 'Street'

Suzaku rushed down the hall, the only sound in his ears were that of his footsteps as it bounded off the glass floor. If Suzaku wasn't careful, he would surely break the floor.

But Suzaku's mind wasn't on consciously controlling the amount of strength he exerted. No, he focused on finding the hidden dungeon which was said to hold the prisoners of the land.

_Flashback_

"By the way, you wouldn't happen to know of any 'other' guests, would you? Of the 'animal-variety' kind" Lelouch asked, looking Euphemia square in the eyes.

'I remember…' Lelouch added 'that when Clovis was young it was a hobby of his to seek out the exotic, the 'otherworldly'. He would put it on display for his own personal amusement. He always claimed that it was part of his 'aesthetic' as an artist. I suspect that this 'aesthetic' of his made its way into this palace and Cornelia must have been more than happy to adopt his hobby."

Euphemia stayed silent for a while. Not because she didn't have something to say, but because she seemed to flow down a stream of nostalgia.

"You remember well" she said longingly. "You are right, dear Lelouch. Clovis included a dungeon into this castle, and presently Cornelia is using it to for holding all the ones she captured"

"Can you tell us where it is?" Lelouch asked, much to Euphemia's surprise.

Normally Lelouch would just get people to slip up and give him the information he wanted, but he asked Euphemia a straight question. In that case, Lelouch, but by asking her openly, he is implying that he trusts her. And Euphemia would oh-so-hate to break that trust.

"You would have to follow the flight of stairs down to the cloud floor. And then access can only be granted those with permission, but…"

"That will not be a problem" Lelouch had heard enough to formulate a plan. "Suzaku" Lelouch addressed Suzaku, who, as if on reflex, stood on attention. "Follow the path Euphemia just mentioned and see if you can find the two missing lambs."

"Roger…but what are you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm going to bring the Crane around. We'll rendezvous at the Southern tower, understand?"

"Hai!" Suzaku said, and they split ways.

_Flashback Ends_

Lelouch had finally trusted Suzaku enough to allow him to do things on his own, and although Suzaku was excited, no, ecstatic about it, he also felt frustrated.

He knew so little of what was truly going on. In the previous conversation between Lelouch and Euphemia, Suzaku felt that there was another conversation taking place on a whole different level which he could not comprehend.

Suzaku had noticed the absence of suspicion in Lelouch's eyes when he gazed at the Princess. That gaze, filled with trust originating from a deep relationship, was mesmerizing for Suzaku. It was like something from another world, something which Suzaku could only dream about one day seeing.

Until then, all that Lelouch would feel fit for Suzaku to know is that Suzaku had to protect Lelouch throughout their journey until they saved Nunnally, after which they will fight for her. Lelouch wasn't concerned with filling Suzaku in on the details about the culprit or even where they were going. Suzaku just tagged along, like a dog on a string. And the string tying them together was Nunnally.

But now, Suzaku started to question his intentions. Would he really risk his own life to save someone he has never even met before, and then marry that person? There might be something else that is tying him and the former dragon together. If there is something else, then what will Suzaku do after they had saved Nunnally?

'_Well'_ Suzaku thought _'It's no use worrying about that now; all I have to focus on now is finding those other two while Lelouch is with the Princess. The Princess…'_ Suzaku paused to think about the pink-haired beauty.

Suzaku had picked up in the earlier conversation that the one behind the kidnapping was the second-in-command of the dragon Clan, and that they were headed for Pendragon. What intrigued Suzaku was that Euphemia's surname was li Britannia, and that this 'second-in-command' was also 'something-Britannia'.

'_Didn't that mean that Euphemia was in cahoots with the culprit, and that Euphemia could have given them false information? Or that she could even betray them at the drop of a hat?'_

Suzaku knew this fear was far-fetched, for he couldn't detect even a grain of malicious intent in the kind, gentle and innocent Princess. He doubted that the Princess even knew where to back stab a person in the first place.

If nothing else, Lelouch at least seemed to trust her, which was enough to set Suzaku's mind even a bit more at ease. It wasn't like Lelouch to make a mistake in trusting someone he should not have trusted. If Euphemia did decide to surprise them all and betray Lelouch, Suzaku would be there with a sword pointed at her throat.

.

.

While Suzaku was thinking about what he would do to Euphemia if she ever betrayed Lelouch, he heard meek murmurs and faint calls for help. The calls reminded him of little animals that had not been fed for a week and was desperately searching for their masters, but was powerless to do so.

Suzaku slammed the brakes and, after he had made a 90 degree turn, went down a long and narrow corridor. The walls were no longer made of glass but clear and sturdy Rainbow Quartz. The aesthetics of the castle never ceased to surprise Suzaku.

He came to a door which had an unnecessarily elaborate lock. Around the door were chains which were tied together in the middle with the lock. Using the hilt of his sword, Suzaku continuously jabbed the lock until it finally submitted to Suzaku's power and broke.

He stepped through the door and the narrow corridor opened up into a larger room. The entire room glittered in the sun's light. However, the light never seemed to reach the inside of the dismal prison cells.

Slowly, Suzaku walked through the room, past the cells. Some cells were empty; others had exotic creatures in that Suzaku had never even seen or heard about before.

Suzaku came to an abrupt halt. He realised that he actually had no idea who or what exactly he was looking for. The only clue Suzaku had, was the type of company Milly liked to hold, and that was normally cute little animals, so that would probably be a good place for him to start.

Suzaku scanned the room until he noticed something small and cuddly in the last cell of the row on his right hand side. He walked to the cage and, kneeling down, looked at the small black-purple Neko bat. Suzaku talked to the little flying carnivore, hoping for a reaction.

"Hello, little one. I have come from Milly, do you know her? She's very worried about you. Oh but I see you're all alone, do you know where your companion is?" Suzaku asked the sleeping creature.

It merely opened one eye and looked Suzaku up and down before going back to sleep.

Suzaku felt a jab of irritation of having been ignored. He was about to say something insulting when he heard a stirring next to him.

He looked to his left and saw that there was another cell at the end of the room. Inside the cell there were two animals, no…humans?

One had bright orange hair and had cat-ears and a tail, while the other had short dark hair and looked half-beaver with a track suit on..

'_They're definitely different from the other prisoners...Could it be them?'_ Suzaku wondered.

"Milly?" A soft, feminine voice asked, answering Suzaku's own dormant question.

'_She knows Milly? It has to be them!'_ Suzaku thought excitedly.

* * *

Slowly, Lelouch and Euphemia walked out on the terrace. The hybrid-dragon was the first to break the blissful silence between them.

"So you will help distract Cornelia while we make our escape?" Lelouch wanted to confirm.

"Yes" Euphemia answered, seemingly preoccupied with something else.

Lelouch could tell that Euphemia had a lot of questions that she was burning to ask, but Lelouch didn't have time to play 20 questions.

"Lelouch..?" Euphemia asked when Lelouch mounted Sayaka. Lelouch looked down at Euphemia, hoping that her question was a simple one. It was not.

"Are you going after him...our father?"

Lelouch looked away and stared into the distance. In the immediate proximity, clear blue skies surrounded the palace. However, in the distance the dark clouds loomed ominously over them. For Lelouch, the palace represented Euphemia's innocent heart, and the storm clouds the evil of the world that Lelouch never wanted to expose his precious half-sister to.

However, when Lelouch looked back into Euphemia's eyes, he could not deny her an answer.

"Yes" Lelouch said simply "I have to save Nunnally and relinquish father from a position where he can threaten the ones I love""

Euphemia was greatly disturbed by this.

"No, Lelouch, you mustn't! Have you forgotten what had happen to Clovis all those years ago?" Euphemia protested while Lelouch's eyes narrowed at the mentioning of his late brother's name.

"You must turn back from the path of revenge, and seek forgiveness and love!" she persisted after Lelouch stayed silent.

"It is already too late. Revenge is a one-way street for me, dear Euphy. I wouldn't even call what I'm doing now revenge; it is preservation for the future." Lelouch said softly, but his voice resonated loudly within Euphemia's ears.

Lelouch moves to take off, but Euphemia stops him.

"Wait, Lelouch! Do you intend to drag your companion down to hell with you?!"

Lelouch paused and looked at Euphemia over his shoulder.

"If he follows me down to Hell, it will be his own choice"

"Oh Lulu...he has such a rare spirit of kindness…"

"I realize that, and if I don't get to him now, that spirit will be wasted either way."

"Wait..Lulu!" Euphemia called after Lelouch, but he was already rounding one of the towers.

"I leave the rest in your hands, Euphy" Euphemia could hear the echo of Lelouch's voice.

Euphemia wanted to cry out, but momentarily putting her doubts aside, Euphemia focused on the herd of dragons approaching from the distance. The vanguard of the Dragon Knights was none other than Cornelia herself, and Euphemia steeled herself for whatever her vengeful sister would throw at her.

* * *

"Pleased to meet you, Rivalz and Shirley" Suzaku said, shaking hands with both at the same time.

"Same to you, but we don't have long to chat" the cat-hybrid-human Shirley said "I can hear Cornelia and her knights approaching."

"Cornelia?" Suzaku parroted. The name sounded oddly familiar to him. While Suzaku was busy trying to free Milly's two comrades from their cold prison, something clicked in Suzaku's mind. He remembered that Lelouch had also mentioned something about Cornelia being Euphemia's sister.

"That's right. She's the ruthless indiscriminate warrior of the Li Britannia Clan, who will take down any and all who dare oppose or ignore her or her ideals." Rivalz clarified "That's why her knights are always having such a hard time keeping her happy…"

"Rivalz, now is not the time!" Shirley, who was already halfway out the cell, scolded Rivalz irritably, and they made their way to the Southern Tower.

From afar the sounds of an oncoming attack unit could be heard, ordering all 'trespassers' to drop their weapons and exit the palace with their hands in the air.

Simultaneously with Suzaku and his new friends, Lelouch arrived at the Southern Tower.

"Get on!" Lelouch ordered.

"But...wouldn't it be better if we actually did what the Sky Cop says?" Rivalz asked, and Shirley contemplated the same.

"Hah? You don't have any weapons to drop in the first place and the last time I checked you guys had paws, not hands, so technically the order doesn't apply to you, right?" Suzaku pointed out while jumping into the chariot.

"Now, all aboard..!" before Suzaku could finish his sentence, Shirley and Rivalz had already jumped into the chariot and they were on their way.

* * *

"Euphemia" Cornelia said as she landed on the terrace, moments after Lelouch had taken off. "Are you alright?" she asked as she jumped from her dragon.

"Yes, sister. As you can see, I am perfectly unharmed" Euphemia said, showing towards her undamaged light pink dress.

"I see, I am glad." Cornelia took Euphemia's hands in her own. "It seems like I've just missed the intruders." Cornelia looked out at the sky before returning her gaze to her dear younger sister. "Don't you worry, Euphy. I'll protect you!"

"Sister, wait" Euphy said, holding on to her sisters' hands before Cornelia could move it away. "The person who came here said that he was going to save Nunnally…"

"Save Nunnally? Such lies! It is all the more reason to stop him"

"No, don't, Sister!"

"Why not?" Cornelia asked sharply. She was losing her temper. "We are merely returning Nunnally to where she rightfully belongs. Anyone who goes against that plan is our enemy"

"Can't you remember the only person who disappeared along with Nunnally all those years ago? The only person who bothered to protect her?"

"What are you saying?"

"Please, think back and try to remember!" Euphemia pleaded.

Not able to ignore her dear little sister's earnest request, Cornelia closed her eyes. She thought back 7 years. In her thoughts she saw a small, dark-haired boy, glaring at their father with a determined and cold face, and she remembered the fate of such insolence.

"Are you saying that he has returned?" Cornelia wanted to clarify.

"That's right. Please halt your pursuit, and let him…"

"No, I cannot believe it" Cornelia turned away from Euphemia and headed towards her patiently waiting dragon. "I will go and confirm it myself."

"But.." Euphemia wanted to protest.

"Why are you trying to stop me? You are acting strangely" Cornelia said, leaving Euphemia could neither admit to nor contradict her sister without giving herself away.

Without a further word, Cornelia took off and, hovering in the air for a moment, looked around for a sign of her prey. Faint scents of a hasty escape lingered in the air, and from it Cornelia could figure out a likely direction in which the culprit could have gone.

'_I'll find you yet, Lelouch!'_

* * *

Lelouch listened to Suzaku talking to their new companions and telling them how awesome he was for saving them in time. Suzaku seemed to have hit it off well with the two new strangers, but that didn't mean Suzaku forgot about Lelouch. Oh no, Suzaku would often ask Lelouch to admit that Lelouch would be completely lost without him.

At that, Lelouch would only smile. Lelouch was glad that he was looking out for Cornelia and thus appeared to be 'too busy' to answer truthfully to Suzaku's questions.

'_Cornelia must be close…' _Lelouch thought as he felt shivers running the 100m race up and down his spine. Lelouch carefully looked at their surroundings and saw that they were heading straight into the storm of the Western Skies.

With one long glance, Lelouch saw a tiny figure approach them from behind. It was gaining on them fast.

"We've been spotted!" Lelouch announced and Suzaku, who quickly took control of the reins and maneuvered them through the sky, trying to slip out of their pursuer's line of sight.

The storm was very much like the storm in the Eastern Sky which they passed through to get to the palace. Dark clouds surrounded them, while lighting flashed, obscuring their view from time to time. Sprays of water danced all around them.

After another flash of lighting, time seemed to have come to a standstill. As the light faded, Rivalz and Shirley, who had been relatively loud up until that moment, went quiet, mouths agape. Surrounding Sayaka and them were all seven of Cornelia's knights.

"Seize them, men!" Cornelia shouted, and at her command, the knights began to move.

Much to their disappointment, Lelouch would not stand by idly while they capture him. Lelouch ran up to the help and shoved Suzaku out of the way.

"Hey..!" Suzaku exclaimed, surprised at the sudden force. "Wha…Lelouch? Now's really not the time to repeat what happened earlier on our way here!"

"I'm not going to fall" Lelouch said with certainty which overrode all Suzaku's fears. Lelouch looked from Suzaku to Rivalz and Shirley, who were both castrating themselves on the ground in fear. Lelouch shifted his gaze to the knights, to the stormy sky, and back to Suzaku.

"Suzaku, I know this might be a bit of a stretch, but you need to trust me on this"

"Geez where have I heard that before…?" Suzaku said sarcastically with a sigh. "Just tell me what it is!"

Lelouch nodded and pointed to the sky.

* * *

"There planning something, Milady!" One of the knights, David, said when he saw their target raise his hand.

"Could it be a surrender?" the one named Claudio, with brown hair, asked.

"No, look; it seems like the target is signalling his companion…!" Edgar, or 'Glasses-kun', pointed out.

"Do not fear them and their half-wit tactics. Charge, now!" Cornelia said, and all at once the knights charged forward.

* * *

Suzaku saw the knights fast approaching, but remained steady, his sword clutched in his hand. Lelouch had told him to wait for the right moment.

Suzaku looked up and saw the many currents of electricity gliding along the clouds. Suzaku waited for the signal from Lelouch, but when it never came he looked over his shoulder at Lelouch, thinking that Lelouch might have fallen overboard again.

But Lelouch was still standing firmly at the reins, watching the knights. After a moment, something flashed across Lelouch's eyes and he nodded his head at Suzaku.

Swiftly, Suzaku threw his sword into the air.

The lighting, seeing the metal of the sword as its next logical pathway, struck the sword, creating a blinding flash. Suzaku and Lelouch crouched down as sparks were sent flying.

Sayaka cried out as several bolts rained down around them.

"I think you've upset the clouds!" Rivalz shouted over the roaring thunder.

"That wasn't my intention, I was only following orders!" Suzaku said, holding his hands in the air in mock defence.

"Never mind that, it looked liked it worked!" Shirley said and pointed to the Dragon Knights who were standing still, allowing Lelouch and co. to make their way down into the West Forest.

"Alright, good job, Suzaku" Lelouch said as they landed in the forest.

Although Lelouch's thanks made Suzaku's day, Suzaku was still sad about his now completely charred sword. Lelouch saw this and smiled, affectionately stroking Suzaku's hair.

"Don't worry, Suzaku, we will get you new sword at the next stop…" Suzaku looked up at Lelouch and gave him an appreciative smile.

"Ooh next stop? Where are we going?" Shirley, who has been eyeing Lelouch for a while, asked.

"'_We _are not going anywhere. I am sending you two back to the Eastern Forest where the Enchantress awaits your return" Lelouch said in a no-nonsense manner.

"What? You're going to send us up into that sky again?!" Rivalz asked, very much worried about the implications of such a travel method.

"Of course not" Suzaku answered quickly "We only flew through the sky because we had to save you from the palace, right?"

"We had business at the palace ourselves" Lelouch reminded Suzaku. "But now there is no problem with letting Sayaka take you back to the Enchantress by going through the forest."

"Wait! I don't want to return yet. Please let me...us...join you" Shirley continuous persistence greatly irked Lelouch.

"Don't make light of our journey! Where we're going is no place for little girls"

"Little…?!" Shirley repeated, shocked. Lelouch's comment convinced her to tag along even could see where the argument was going and decided to, in an infamous moment of wisdom, intervene.

"Let's just go with what they say for now" he whispered.

"What? Why?"

"Because if we lie low for a while, they'll let down their guard and we can follow them later on"

"Oh, I see your plan, okay. Let's do it!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Rivalz spoke up. "Shirley just got a little over excited here; we'll go home as you said."

Lelouch studied Rivalz for a moment before answering.

"Alright. Sayaka, see to it that they return safely" Lelouch ordered, and Sayaka nodded her head.

"Wait, aren't we going to need Sayaka from here on?" Suzaku asked.

"No, from here on out we will change our mode of transportation and in doing so, throw any pursuers of our track" Lelouch explained, and then looked back at Rivalz, Shirley and Sayaka. "Then, until we meet again!'

"Bye bye!" Suzaku waved, and they waved back.

"Goodbye!"

"See ya'!"

"ka-KA!" *Goodbye in bird language*

.

"So...where are we going?" Suzaku asked once he was sure that the others were out of ear shot. As he asked the question, they exited the forest and came to a standstill on a hill overlooking port town.

"We…" Lelouch said before turning to Suzaku with his lips twisted into a mischievous smirk "...are going on a cruise"

* * *

**A/N:** Hey guys, thanks for reading! I am going to update once every two weeks or once month from now on, depends on how life goes. Thank you for your support regardless!

**AzulTheBlueDagon:** Thank you so much! **yuuram2fangirl:** Sankyuu! sorry if there's not much in this chapter, but I'm planning on adding more fluff the next chapter ^^ **A Random Person:** You again! It's always a pleasure to have you *bows* And no, Lelouch is unable too transform now, since Nunnally is the source of his power and she's 'out of range'. But I do like the idea of a tournament and I actually have a place for it, so look forward to it ^^. **InsanePurpleLove:** Awww thank you so much, I'm honored! As I told Yuuram2fangirl, the next chapter is going to be all SuzaLulu!

Thanks also for those who favorited (yes I know that's not a word)/ followed my story! I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you and my conscience nagging me ^^

Also for the guests who read my story, you're welcome to leave a comment too ^^"

BETA: **Icy-Kitty117 **Sankyuu!


	7. Across the Sea

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass or any of its characters.

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 7: Across the Sea

"I know you said you would get me a new sword and all, but does it have to be here?" Suzaku asked as he and Lelouch walked through the small port town.

Suzaku had been to many port towns through his travels while he was still freeloading on Mother Earth. However, all the towns he went to were vibrant and loud, where trade and festivals happened all around. But that town, with its vandalized houses and rotten stench which polluted the air, was anything but welcoming.

To Suzaku's left, there was a person lying and sleeping on a piece of cardboard. Further down along the road there was a person who sat against the wall of an abandoned road, huddles under a thin, worn-out blanket. The few people who walked down the road all had the same expression on their face. It was the expression of the displaced and disposed. The town was the picture of depravity and poverty.

Lelouch saw the expression on Suzaku's face, and he felt the empathy oozing out of the people-loving Suzaku. Lelouch knew that Suzaku cared more about people than his own sense of justice, and that bringing him here was similar to bringing him to hell, but they had to pass through here to get to the next stage of their journey. Still, Lelouch felt that an explanation for the town's state was in order.

"It happened seven years ago…" Lelouch began softly "After the internal strife in the Dragon Clan, they attacked this town, and a few others, in search for the treasure they had lost…"

"Treasure?" Suzaku asked.

"The town never recovered…" Lelouch added.

"I hope this 'treasure' was worth it" Suzaku said. Lelouch clenched his fists.

It was ironic that Suzaku would ask such a thing; because this 'treasure' was the same thing that Suzaku was going on this journey for. Suzaku hoped to obtain the same 'treasure', but he did not realize it. It would be better, felt Lelouch, if Suzaku never realized this.

They continued to walk, down the small hill and past the many fishing boats anchored to the harbour. The silence between Lelouch and Suzaku was strained, with Suzaku not asking anything more and Lelouch not willing to say anything more.

They neared the end of the docks, where a slightly larger boat than the rest was anchored. It was in a slightly better condition than the other boats, only needing a bit of refurbishing and new sails to replace the torn ones.

"There" Lelouch said and they walked up to the boat. In front of the boat, stood two people and a third person sat in the middle.

Suzaku immediately knew that they were not locals. Except for the hopeless expression that was absent from their faces, they were wearing much better clothes as well. There was a young woman (girl?) sitting in the middle of two suited up men. She was dressed very formally in a kimono, with her hair hanging loose on her shoulders. She covered her face with a fan.

"The one in the middle is our next contact. She is an informant"

'An informant?' Suzaku wondered as he and Lelouch approached the ship 'Why would Lelouch know a shady person like that?'

When Suzaku and Lelouch were close, the two guards stepped in front the young woman for protection. Lelouch and Suzaku stopped a few feet away from them.

"State your business" the one asked in a gruff voice.

"It is I, Lelouch, and I have come to speak with the informant"

The young woman stiffened. The one suit wanted to say something more, but the young woman held out her hand to stop him.

"For what purpose do you want to speak with me?" she asked.

"I want a sword and a safe passage across the _Barren _Sea to the main Island." Lelouch said.

"You know my price, correct? You wish for something, you have to give me something in return"

Lelouch glanced at Suzaku behind him.

"Agreed. May we speak in private?" Lelouch asked.

"Very well" she said and stood. She signaled her one guard to watch Suzaku while her other guard followed her and Lelouch some distance away.

'More secrets...' Suzaku thought in frustration 'More secrets that I'm not allowed to know. I don't like it at ALL'

.

.

"It's been a long time, Kaguya" Lelouch said as affectionately as he could.

The young woman chuckled behind her fan, before taking it down.

"I was surprised that it's you, Lelouch. The last time you asked for my help, you were a dragon…" she reminisced.

"Yes, well, I've come to you because I have a similar problem this time"

"Oh? I hope you have a piece of information your request as well then"

"There is"

"Do tell, then"

"The Pendragon Dragon Clan had captured Nunnally."

"And so? I am already aware of this."

Lelouch sighed before he continued.

"I suspect that the reason they did it is because they...'

.

.

Lelouch was standing with his back facing Suzaku. Suzaku could see that the informant was no longer covering her face, but because Lelouch was standing in front of her he couldn't see her face.

Whatever it was that Lelouch was telling Kaguya, Lelouch didn't want Suzaku to have any part of it. It frustrated Suzaku that this far into the journey, Lelouch would still not trust him enough to tell him certain things.

Lelouch bowed to the young woman, and she signaled something to the guard who was watching Suzaku.

The guard took Suzaku into one of the storage houses which had been converted into a sort of armory. The guard told Suzaku that he could pick out whatever sword he wanted.

Suzaku spent some time browsing through all the swords. He inspected the blade of each sword, but none of the swords felt right for him. There was one though, which stood out above all the rest. It had a light purple sheath with a golden dragon engraved into it. He drew the sword from its sheath. Its silver blade shimmered in the light. The sword felt light in Suzaku's hands when we swung it in precise arcs. The sword captured Suzaku in its haunting beauty.

"This one"

The guard looked at the sword for moment and nodded. He followed Suzaku out.

Suzaku saw that Lelouch was already waiting aboard the ship when Suzaku returned. The young woman stood at the bottom of the stairs which went up to the ship.

Suzaku bowed to her when he passed her, and she returned the gesture.

'This was the woman Lelouch had confided in. Lelouch told her something that Lelouch wouldn't even tell him.' Suzaku thought. Suzaku knew that it was necessary for their journey, but he felt that anything this woman was allowed to know, he could know as well. Suzaku looked up to Lelouch. Suzaku would no longer stand for being left out.

That night was the night the Suzaku was determined to get Lelouch to talk, no matter what it would take. Suzaku climbed up the stairs, and looked stared at Lelouch's back as he did so.

"Hey Lelouch…" Suzaku said as he walked up to Lelouch. Suzaku had seen that the informant was busy talking to three buff-looking men. Suzaku took the chance to confront Lelouch.

"What did you tell that informant?" Suzaku asked Lelouch, who was standing at the rail of the boat.

"Nothing that concerns you" Lelouch said, not looking at Suzaku.

"What? How can it not concern me? It's got to have something to do with this journey, right?"

"This journey?" Lelouch repeated, grimacing. "Are you still after my sister? Is that why you are clinging onto the idea of 'this journey'?" Lelouch asked.

"Wha…?" Suzaku stayed silent for a moment. It was true, Suzaku had been thinking about his reason for being on this journey since the arrogant dragon turned into an even more arrogant human. Was he still on that journey because he wanted to marry a girl he had fallen in love with only in name, not in flesh? Or was it a more substantial reason than that? Something much closer related to him..?

"No…probably not…so much anymore" Suzaku admitted softly. Suzaku didn't miss the softest of sighs that escaped Lelouch's lips.

"Alright then…I'm letting you out of the deal"

"What? Why?"

"I have already provided a new sword for you, so what more do I owe you?"

"You don't owe me anything! I'm here on this journey because I want to be here!"

"Why? Why would you tie yourself to me like this?"

Suzaku grit his teeth.

"Don't get full of yourself; I'm not doing this for you!" Suzaku and Lelouch's eyes both widened as Suzaku spoke his words. "Shit…that's not what I…"

"Then what…?" Lelouch asked softly "If it's not for my sister and not for me, then…?"

Suzaku fell into another fit of silence, clenching his fists.

"No…I only said that because it was in the heat of the moment…" Suzaku explained. Lelouch neither accepted nor refuted his explanation.

"I'll give you one more chance. Why do you want to join me?"

"Since the beginning…" Suzaku started, taking a step towards Lelouch "I promised that I would be your 'knight'." Another step; Suzaku was inches away from Lelouch. Suzaku's head hung in submission before he took a deep breath and looked up into Lelouch's eyes. "And I never go back on my promises. That's against my code of honor. So please, let me protect you" Suzaku pleaded with wide eyes, taking both of Lelouch's small hands into his larger ones.

"It's going to be difficult" Lelouch responded. It felt as if his heart had been twisted into an odd shape. It was painful. "It's going to be dangerous. From here on out, you cannot turn back, even when things get hard. When you feel as if it's unbearable, you will have to bear it. If you long for home know that you cannot return on a whim."

Suzaku clutched Lelouch's hands tighter, feeling that if he let go, Lelouch would have left him behind.

"I don't care if it's going to be difficult, and I'm not afraid of danger, or I never would have attacked a dragon's fortress in the first place." Suzaku laughed sheepishly.

Lelouch looked into Suzaku's eyes, and he couldn't say no. Lelouch wanted to remove his hands, but Suzaku's grip only tightened. Lelouch couldn't refuse Suzaku. Suzaku had earnestly broken through every one of Lelouch's arguments.

'_Why...why would you go this far for me? Or is it only for you?'_ Lelouch wondered, but did not ask aloud. Lelouch resigned with a sigh.

"Don't regret it"

Suzaku's face lit up. He was more relieved than words could express. Not knowing what to do with himself, Suzaku resorted to primal instincts. He threw his arms around Lelouch, holding him in a tight embrace.

"I won't...thank you!" he said.

Lelouch, surprised by the sudden attack, did not know what to do. He had lived most of his life as a dragon, so the sudden contact with another human made him feel uncomfortable. His arms hung awkwardly at his sides. Slowly, he moved his arms up and placed his hands on Suzaku's back. In response to this, Suzaku rested his head on Lelouch's shoulder.

The sudden action surprised Lelouch, and it didn't stop there. Lelouch felt how Suzaku turned his head on Lelouch's shoulder.

"I promise that I will protect you" Suzaku whispered into Lelouch's ear. The sudden hot breath against Lelouch's cold and sensitive ear caused Lelouch to jump. Lelouch wanted to be free of Suzaku's entrapment, but Suzaku only held on tighter. Lelouch had no choice but to clutch Suzaku's shirt.

"No...air…" Lelouch breathed. When Suzaku didn't loosen his grip, Lelouch moved his head away from where it was pressed against Suzaku's shoulder, and demanded loudly "Loosen up you idiot! I can't breathe!"

"Huh? Oh...sorry" Suzaku apologized with a sheepish laugh, and moved away from Lelouch. The sudden loss of heat caused Lelouch to shiver. Suzaku laughed at Lelouch's pure reaction, causing Lelouch to blush.

Suzaku took Lelouch into his arms again and softly held him.

"You...you don't have to go this far" Lelouch said, but didn't struggle against Suzaku's grip. It bothered Lelouch that while he might be superior in mind, Suzaku was stronger in physical strength.

"Do you dislike it?" Suzaku asked, as if he had read Lelouch's mind.

"No...I wouldn't say dislike. It's just...I doubt that Knights would normally do this"

Suzaku laughed at this, and Lelouch felt how Suzaku's chest heaved against his face.

"If you don't dislike it then there's no problem. As your knight, I shall listen anything you ask"

At that, Lelouch stayed silent. They stayed liked that a bit longer, until a guard came to them with a blanket, saying that they should beware of the cold night that lay ahead. Suzaku gratefully accepted the blanket, without letting go of Lelouch.

"Set sail!"

At Kaguya's command, the sails unfurled and the boat rocked. The calm evening breeze filled the sails, urging it forward.

"Look…" Lelouch said, and Suzaku lifted his head from where it was rested on Lelouch's. Suzaku first noticed the changing color of the sky before he looked at the sun setting over the western horizon; over their next destination. But Suzaku knew that _that_ was not what Lelouch wanted to show him. Suzaku looked in the opposite direction and saw that Lelouch was gazing at the town they had just left.

The town was bathed in a warm yellow light. There were no traces of the grey desolation that had been present earlier that day. The changing of the sky's light almost represented the change from the people's despair to hope. But that change was short-lived, as soon it got dark again. However, just as a cloud of hopelessness seemed to fall over the town again, the street lights lit up one by one. One by one fire in the houses were lit as well, simultaneous with the awakening of the stars. All the fishermen who were out at sea that day returned, along with the result of their hard work.

The people on board the ship spoke a great deal about the large amount of fish that had been caught that day. All the people, even the poor, would be invited to the town square. Soon a trace of the smoke trail could be seen rising above the town. All of the people would have food that night.

"It's a big change from earlier" Lelouch stated "Even the hopeless can regain hope, even if it's only for a little while, huh?"

"Yeah…" Suzaku agreed. He finally loosened his grip on Lelouch and stepped away.

Lelouch was surprised at Suzaku's change in expression. Suzaku was like a hurricane; an unpredictable phenomenon, for Lelouch. Lelouch never knew what Suzaku would say next, what he would do next. And it intrigued him for reasons unknown. All that Lelouch knew was that he suddenly felt an urge to ask more, to know more.

.

.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"...What do you mean? Why would something be wrong?" Suzaku asked trying to sound cheerful but failing.

"No it's just...you suddenly had this troubled expression on your face, so I just wondered what might be cause of such the sudden change."

"Oh? So you were paying attention to my face? Does that mean you like it?" Suzaku asked playfully.

"O-of course not!" Lelouch said, slightly flustered. Suzaku responded with another laugh.

"Ah don't say that, there's no need to hold back!"

"I am being serious on this matter here!" Lelouch said, turning away from Suzaku. Again, Suzaku just laughed. Lelouch suddenly felt the blanket being wrapped around him and Suzaku, who hugged him from behind.

"Thank you" Suzaku whispered.

"What for…?"

"For being concerned about me"

"I-I wasn't really concerned"

"Then why ask?"

"..."

Suzaku chuckled softly, and they both sank and sat on the deck.

The close proximity of their bodies plus the blanket caused it to be stifling hot for Lelouch. Lelouch wasn't used to it so it still caused him to feel uncomfortable. Lelouch shifted a few times, but couldn't seem to find a comfortable position. Suzaku was also affected by the heat, but for him it had an opposite effect. The heat went to his head and caused him to mumble softly in his half-asleep state.

"A long time ago..." Suzaku began "Me and my parents lived happily together in our little house. I would always go out to the woods and chop the wood, my mother would make a fire, and my father hunted. He always said I was too young to hunt" Suzaku chuckled.

Lelouch wondered why Suzaku suddenly told him this, but Suzaku didn't seem to know what he was doing himself, so Lelouch stayed quiet. This 'bedtime' story might have been what Lelouch wanted to hear.

"It was a simple life...I would always play with the other village kids. I was always 'the last samurai' and used a stick as my 'all powerful' sword"

'_Sounds like it was happy times'_ Lelouch thought to himself. There was a slight pause before Suzaku continued.

"Then it all changed 7 years ago. I went out to the woods to chop wood like always, when one of the village kids ran up to me, shouting that 'we are being attacked we are being attacked'. At first I thought 'you're joking, right?', but then I saw smoke rising from where the village was.

I ran back to the village, and saw that everything...everything was burning. I wanted to run away, but not without my parents. I ran through the village. Everything was burning; the wood planks that had been used to build the houses were strewn about.

When I reached the house, I saw that it was already on fire. By then I had probably lost all sense. I ran into the house, shouting 'mama!', 'papa!". Nothing. I went into their room and saw that the roof had caved in. Under the debris laid a body. I didn't want to believe it, but I noticed that indeed, it was my mother. She didn't respond when I called her. All around me I heard women and children screaming. I didn't know if it was in trauma, pain, or both. It was then that my father burst into the room, and after seeing what I had seen, he grabbed me by my hand and ran out. I didn't want to go; I didn't want to leave my mama."

Quietly and slowly, tears had begun to trail down Suzaku's cheeks.

"I don't know how far we ran, but I came to when my father suddenly stopped running. We were in the midst of a dark forest. I looked behind me and could see the red of the flames maliciously shining in the distance. 'Stay back' my father said. I looked to where he was looking and saw, through the trees, two glimmering dark eyes. It was the eyes of an enormous beast. It had wings, claws and a scaly tail.

"I didn't realize what it was then, but my father did. In a mad fit, my father attacked the beast, waving his sword about, but with one sweep of its claw, the beast sent my father crashing against a tree. My father slid down the tree, blood trail running down his forehead.

"I was terrified. The beast looked at me, only looked, before it flared its nostrils and turned away. With a flap of its wings, it took off. The wind caused by the wings caused me to fall.

"I don't know how long I sat there, but somehow I managed to regain the strength in my body and went to check on my father. He was still alive, but barely. I used the forest remedies my mother taught me and treated my father's wounds. I stayed with him, until he was better. When he regained consciousness and his strength, we walked back to the village.

"By then, the fire had died down, and everything was nothing but a pile of smoldering ash. The stench of death and decayed wood stained the air. I felt sick.

"My father went to our old house and retrieved what was left of my mother's charred body. We gave her a proper burial. We couldn't stay in that charred piece of land, so we left.

"My father was very weak; the damage to his head had been severe. He collapsed before we reached the following town. I used all my strength to carry him there. He never saw another village again. The town women were nice. They told me to stay. But I couldn't. I didn't have a place to call my own anymore.

"Seeing that port town...it reminded me of those terrifying times. It reminded me of my village, which was in a much worse state. In fact, I'm jealous. You said they have hope, né Lelouch…? That's true, isn't it? They have food, homes, light. How many times...have I wished...for that same hope...too?"

Suzaku ended before nodding off, his head falling on Lelouch shoulder.

Lelouch had gone completely stiff. He had been ever since he realized what day Suzaku was talking about. He was there that day as well...It was the day he fled with Nunnally from their father. He didn't known that he had been followed. The dragons that chased Lelouch demanded that they hand over Nunnally. When Lelouch refused, they tried to use a village as a bargaining chip. It didn't work, for Lelouch didn't care for that village at the time; the village in the middle of the woods...the village where Suzaku had lived.

Lelouch felt sick. It was because of him. It was his fault that Suzaku had not had a place to stay the past couple of years. The weight of Suzaku's head on Lelouch felt heavier than ever. Or was it the weight of Lelouch's own guilt that he was feeling?

Lelouch raked a hand through his hair. First Lelouch got Suzaku's village mixed up in everything, and somehow, the person so deeply affected by Lelouch's action, had gotten involved with Lelouch again.

Was god testing Lelouch? Was Fate playing a cruel joke on them, by tying the pinkies of him and Suzaku, who should resent him, together? Was it Destiny for Suzaku to be involved in the strife that first took his village and could possible now take his life?

Lelouch didn't want that. It was a miracle that Suzaku had survived that day, and Lelouch didn't want Suzaku to throw his life away. Lelouch would make sure that nothing bad will ever happen to Suzaku again. Lelouch didn't know how he would do it, but at least for that moment in time, keeping Suzaku nearby would be the best.

"I will protect you…"

Lelouch whispered as he felt under the blankets for Suzaku's hands. He found it and squeezed it tightly within his own two hands, bringing it up to his chest. Lelouch clutched it tightly, before falling asleep.

.

.

It was early the next morning, the stars still taking their turns to disappear one by one, before Suzaku woke up to a strange feeling. It was like he was being showered in affection, and at the same time treated so gently. He looked to where his hands were being held close to a certain-former dragon's chest.

Suzaku vaguely remembered narrating his past. Was it in a dream or in real life? Judging from the remorseful expression on Lelouch's face, Suzaku determined that it probably happened in real life.

Suzaku wondered why Lelouch looked so guilt-ridden and sad though. There was nothing he could have done at the time, right? Nevertheless, Suzaku was very happy about the concern that showed on Lelouch's face. Suzaku felt all the more protective over the sleeping face that showed such honesty.

Suzaku felt like he may have found a place to belong. He hoped that, after this journey was over, that he could stay with Lelouch. As a friend or a knight, it didn't matter. Suzaku laughed softly and blushed a bit. He wondered where his thoughts were coming from, and although it was embarrassing thoughts, Suzaku wouldn't take them back or contradict them.

Suzaku managed to wriggle his hands loose from Lelouch's death grip without awakening the latter. Lelouch protested with a soft moan and shivered. Lelouch was cold. The blanket was covering most of Suzaku's- and only half of Lelouch's body. Suzaku gave an affectionate smile and took Lelouch into his arms. He placed Lelouch's head on his lap, and folded the blanket around the sleeping young man.

Suzaku knew that Lelouch would probably have a fit if he wakes up in this position, but Suzaku didn't mind. He couldn't let Lelouch catch a cold now, could he?

Suzaku then looked up at the sky. He followed the dark sky as it faded into the light blue that was brought about by the sun peeking its head over the horizon.

It was another day. Another day where Suzaku would give his all to protect Lelouch, and if Lelouch deems him worthy, will accept him as more than that. He hoped that someday, Lelouch would accept him as a friend as well…

* * *

**A/N: **Hey guys, thank you, as always, for reading this chapter!

Thank you reviewers **NessatheSinner** (Fantas-tic? Haha I don't know...but thanks a lot! And yeah I wonder what Nunnally's reaction is going to be too aha ^^") y**uuram2fangirl** (Thank you for waiting, and for reminding me about the others! I honestly forgot...but I'll get a spot for them somewhere!) and **A Random Person** (It's always fun to have you! And I guess I've been a bit down lately...but I'm over it now! I think...^^"). Thank you also to those who favorited/followed my story, I'll make a list with your names someday too!

**P.S.** Please look forward to the next chapter, things are going to shift into fourth gear!

Thanks to **Icy-Kitty-117** for beta-ing


	8. Invitation into the Night

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass, that honor belongs to Sunrise.

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 8: Invitation into the Night

'_As the push and pull of the tides gently sways a boat from left to right,  
__So too does it represent the ebb and flow of emotions felt during the night.  
__Revelations occur during a time of darkness in knowledge,  
__Bringing the light of wisdom with it.  
__And because darkness always turns to light,  
__So shalt night turn to day.'_

Suzaku recalled his grandfather's poem as he watched the color of the sky turning from a somber blue to an orange-infused flamingo pink. Suzaku felt a stirring on his lap.

"Good morning, Lelouch" Suzaku greeted avidly.

"...? Good morning Suzaku" Lelouch answered in return, lifting his head slowly. It was when Lelouch looked up and saw how close Suzaku's face was that he realized how close they actually were. Lelouch noticed that his hand was resting on Suzaku's thigh. Lelouch immediately removed his hand and scuffled away, a slight blush dusting his cheeks.

"I'm sorry; I must have fallen asleep in a very precarious position"

"No worries" Suzaku laughed "I fell asleep like that too, remember?"

"I'm sorry if I caused you any discomfort…"

"Not at all" Suzaku said placating "More importantly, look Lelouch!" Suzaku said as he stood, pulling Lelouch up along with him. "It's the town"

And sure enough, Lelouch and Suzaku could see, from where they were standing on the stern of the ship, that they were closing in on their destination; the Port Town Agulhas of the Main Island Avalon.

The atmosphere of the town could be felt as far as the ship. Instead of small, hopeless and abandoned like the previous port town, Agulhas was much larger and seemed much more threatening and hostile. Everywhere in the streets thug-like groups of people sat gathered in a tight circles, or duos of armed men walked past the bustling shops, where people were constantly bartering for goods. Most of these trades resulted in violence.

Once the ship came to a standstill, the captain blew a horn. It was a bellowing sound, signaling all the people on board to leave the ship.

"Let's go, Suzaku" Lelouch said as he made his way to the stairs. Suzaku felt an ominous presence and insisted on taking the lead. Sure enough, when Suzaku and Lelouch reached the top of the stairs, they could see two people, a small girl and an adolescent man, waiting at the bottom of the ship's stairs.

Both of them looked up simultaneously, and by the way their expressions changed when they saw Lelouch, Suzaku could safely conclude that they had waited for him.

"Do you know them?" Suzaku asked.

"No" Lelouch, who had noticed the two strangers, answered "It's the first time I have seen them"

"They seem to know you" Suzaku retorted "But...how? Didn't you say that this method of travel was the safest and nobody would suspect it?" Suzaku questioned.

"It seems that I was wrong" Lelouch said, narrowing his eyes. Lelouch silently followed Suzaku down the stairs until they were in front of the two people.

The two people were regally dressed in tight-fitting Knight-like uniforms. Both of their uniforms were white with gold trims, frills and buttons. They both wore extravagant capes; the girl wore a fuchsia pink one and the man wore a dark green cape.

"Greetings, Sir Lelouch" the adolescent man greeted.

"State your name and business" Lelouch ordered bluntly.

"Of course, sire. I am Gino Weinberg, and this is Anna Alstreim. We are the Knight of Six and the Knight of Three of the Knights of the Round respectively" the man named Gino introduced himself and his female companion - who seemed dreadfully bored and uninterested in the current exchange.

"I see...and what do the Dragon Clan leader's personal guards want with me?"

"Our orders are to deliver this invitation to you." Gino said simple as he held out a sealed envelope to Lelouch.

Suzaku took the letter first and opened it, confirming that it was safe, before he handed it to Lelouch. The invitation read as follows:

'_**I invite you to attend a wonderful display of power in a special event of Pendragon's annual Battle Royale. It is a show that will leave you utterly speechless! It is in your best interest to come, if you value what is important to you. C. v. B.' **_It showed the date, place and time.

Lelouch was obviously being lured into a trap, but he couldn't take the idea of his sister being threatened lightly. **_'...if you value what is important to you'_**. Nunnally's fate was at stake, and Lelouch didn't want to deny such an open invitation to meet his _former_ father.

"Tell _him _that I have received his message and that I gladly accept his invitation" Lelouch said diplomatically.

"Heh, will do. Whether you and your comrade will actually make it alive or not is an entirely different story though" Gino smirked, throwing a teasing sideways glance at Suzaku.

"What did you say, you bastard?"

"Calm down, Suzaku..."

"Are you threatening me, or insulting my abilities to protect Lelouch?"

"I'm not sure, both maybe?" Gino laughed.

"Easy Suzaku, they're not worth it, save your energy." Lelouch said, holding Suzaku back by holding his elbow.

"Come on, let's go, Anya. This has been a trifle errand" Gino said as he led Anya away.

"Hai" she drawled, attention never leaving the flip book in her hands.

He glanced over his shoulder one last time. "I look forward to seeing you again" Gino's laugh faded as he and his companion disappeared into he village crowd.

"Knights of the round, huh? How scary" Suzaku deadpanned.

"It's best not to become involved with them"

"What about them?" Suzaku asked as a band of 4 muscular and gruff men approached them.

Lelouch had noticed the band's presence ever since he first set foot on land. A hawk-eyed man led the group. Lelouch had felt the man intensely watching his exchanges with the two knights for some time. From the raging fumes Lelouch picked up, Lelouch was sure that the man didn't like the Knights.

Suzaku instinctively stepped in front of Lelouch when he came close, but Lelouch signaled Suzaku to stand down "We'll hear what they have to say" he said.

"May I see the invitation you just received?" the stern man, who Lelouch assumed was the leader, asked.

"May I ask your what you intend to do with this information?"

"Just say that we are...party crashers" he answered smoothly. The man's stoic face couldn't fool Lelouch. Lelouch could feel the blood lust and thirst for vengeance oozing out of the man. If Lelouch played his cards right, this man could become of great use to him.

Lelouch handed him the letter, and he took it with a stiff bow. The man skimmed through the contents of the letter. His already slanted eyes narrowed even more (if that was even possible) when he saw from whom the invitation was from. He handed it back to Lelouch.

"Thank you" he said.

"...And you are?" Lelouch asked.

"It's best you don't know, lest you want to get involved in battles that will envelope the entire Britannia Archipelago*.

The man left. His subordinates, the three gruff men and a woman fell into step behind him. They left Lelouch in a very unpleasant position; where information was being withheld from him. Lelouch looked towards the boat and saw that the informant Kaguya had already fallen in with the town's culture of battering. The people bartered for safe passage across the sea with their precious pieces of information.

After Kaguya nodded at a middle-aged woman, granting her passage, Lelouch approached her.

"Kaguya" he said

"Ah, Lelouch! Full of the island and want to leave already?" she asked playfully. Lelouch ignored her jest.

"Do you know those men?" he asked, nodding towards the retreating group. Kaguya looked past Lelouch at the five people he was talking about.

"I might" Kaguya said with a smile.

"Who are they?"

"I wonder...why don't you show me something interesting and I'll tell you what I know?"

Lelouch sighed and showed Kaguya the invitation he had received from the Dragon Leader.

"I see...how interesting indeed" Kaguya said and returned the letter to Lelouch.

"The leader of the group is known as Kyoshiro Tohdoh. He is also the leader of a Revolutionary Army who is planning to overthrow the monarchy some time soon. Apparently it has something to do with Britannia having destroyed their families and the heritage structures of their villages."

A 'Revolutionary army' was better than Lelouch had hoped. Such a grand force was just waiting for Lelouch to use them. And use them, Lelouch would. But not yet. The time for revolution was not yet ripe, and that Kyoshiro Tohdoh man knew it. Regardless of when, Tohdoh owed Lelouch a favor. And repay the favor, he will. Until then Lelouch would continue to let the group go down their destructive path of revenge

Lelouch thanked Kaguya and left, only then realizing that he was alone. He looked around, and noticed that Suzaku had disappeared. Lelouch became worried for a moment.

"Hey Lelouch!" Suzaku called from behind Lelouch.

"Suzaku! Where were you?" Lelouch asked, relieved that he didn't lose his Knight.

"I just went out to ask about the note on the letter. Didn't I tell you?"

"This is the first I have heard about it"

"Oh? The note suggested something about meeting up with a certain caravan at a specified time." Suzaku pointed to the said note. It was scribbled in the bottom left hand corner on the backside of the invitation.

'_That note is not suspicious...not suspicious at all'_ Lelouch thought sarcastically. It was obvious to him that someone added the note afterwards, and that someone was luring into a trap, but Lelouch didn't know by whom. _"Could it have been the Knights?" _he wondered.

"What did you find out about it?"

"Well, this nice old baker woman said that the caravan was a traveling caravan that passed through here every month with supplies, before returning to the capital. She said that the caravan arrived this morning and that they should leave before sunrise"

'_So it's a civilian caravan? The timing is just too good though...Are the Knights (or whoever is behind the note) seriously considering ambushing a civilian caravan just to get to him? Well, when looking at the clan and their aesthetics, that is not entirely outside the realm of possibilities."_

"Whoever added the note is probably luring us into a trap. Unfortunately, walking is out of the question because it would take too long..." Lelouch sighed. He was left with no other choices. He would have to join the caravan and hope that his suspicions about a possible ambush were wrong.

"We have no choice. Let's go" Lelouch said, and Suzaku fell into step behind him.

* * *

Despite trying to convince himself that the caravan would be safe, Lelouch was still uneasy about using such a public method to travel. Lelouch was constantly on the lookout for any signs of danger or doom.

From where he sat next to Lelouch, Suzaku could feel Lelouch's restlessness. Suzaku understood what Lelouch was so afraid of. Lelouch hated involving innocent lives in his fights. It was extra blood on his hands and a burden on his conscience; a burden that Lelouch did not want to carry with him.

Suzaku joined Lelouch in his lookout, thinking that it would put Lelouch a bit more at ease.

"Look Lelouch...do you see it?" Suzaku asked and looked up. Lelouch did the same.

"They sky has turned an orange-yellow color" Suzaku began "I wanted to show you the changing colors of the sky this morning, but I didn't want to wake you. I'm happy that I'm able to show it to you now"

"I see…it's beautiful" Lelouch agreed.

It's not like Lelouch had never seen the sun set before (although his castle was mostly always surrounded by darkness. However, that particular sunset was especially beautiful. They could only see a narrow strip of sky running parallel with the gravel road they were traveling on. The tops of the tall trees that surrounded them blocked out the rest of the sky.

Suzaku hoped that seeing the beautiful sky and hearing Suzaku's sentiments would help Lelouch to open up to Suzaku, but it seemed that it would be more difficult than that. The initiative once again fell to Suzaku.

"Ne Lelouch" Suzaku began, deciding that he would start with a simple question "Do you know the vi Britannia clan leader?"

"What brought that question on?" Lelouch asked, effectively keeping his even slightly shocked expression from showing.

"Well the leader of the vi Britannia clan personally sent you an invitation to an exclusive event, the second-in-command of the clan is the one who captured your sister, and you also know other important people too, like Princess Euphemia."

Lelouch stayed silent.

"Lelouch…" Suzaku tried again "When did you and Nunnally start living in that castle? Why are you living there in the first place?"

Once again, Lelouch answered nothing, but he did state something.

"Everything I have done, everything I do, and everything I am going to do is all for Nunnally's sake and for her protection only."

"And you are protecting her from the vi Britannia's? Why?"

"Enough!" Lelouch said, grinding his teeth. "Cease all this pointless que…"

Lelouch paused and sensed that a malicious force was approaching them.

"Suzaku!"

"Right!" Suzaku, who had sensed the malicious force as well, jumped up and drew his sword. As he did so, the blunt side of his sword deflected a blast that had been directly for them. Suzaku sent the greenish light blast spiraling into sky, exploding mid-air.

The shock waves of the explosion greatly unsettled the caravan. Birds flew away from their safe havens, ascending into the sky.

"Change route to BF-3!" Lelouch ordered the cart-driver. Lelouch thought that something like this might happen, so he made a back-up plan with the leader of the caravan beforehand. The driver responded with a nod.

"Everyone, follow me!" He shouted and took a right, moving in a north-eastern direction. All the others in the Caravan followed suit. Suzaku and Lelouch immediately took off in a western direction.

"He's following us!" Suzaku called from where he was running slightly behind Lelouch.

"I knew it! He must only be after us. That note was a set up for an ambush after all!"

"Fortunately he's leaving the caravan to do its job of transporting necessary supplies to the capital" Suzaku pointed out.

"Lucky for them, not so much for us. Keep a vigilant eye, Suzaku!"

"Hai!" Suzaku said as he saw many magic blasts heading their way. Suzaku wielded his newly attained sword with ease. It was lighter than anything he ever felt, and its blade was razor sharp. Sharp enough to slice through all the magic blasts.

One by one, Suzaku managed to deflect the barrage of magic blasts that came down on them.

The attacker, getting annoyed with his attacks failing, dramatically increased his attack speed. Still Suzaku was able to deflect them all. He wouldn't let a single blast go past him.

"Don't worry Lelouch, I'll protect you!" Suzaku called over his shoulder.

"What are you doing? Don't take your eyes of your enemy!" Lelouch called back.

"He's right" a voice said through the forest.

'Wha..?" Suzaku looked around to see a disk-like sphere about to hit him at point-blank range, just in time to use his sword to shield his face. Before Suzaku could sigh of relief, he felt something swish past him.

As if time had slowed down, Suzaku's eyes followed another disk-like sphere as it made its way towards Lelouch. Lelouch jumped out of the way just as the sphere hit the ground. The impact created a powerful wave that sent both Lelouch and Suzaku flying in opposite directions.

"Lelouch!" Suzaku called. Suzaku saw Lelouch struggling to his feet, and immediately scampered towards him. Suzaku halted his movements when large vines magically sprouted from the earth, completely entrapping him.

"Run Lelouch, I'll deal with this!" Suzaku shouted while he, with one swing of his sword, cut through a wall of vines.

"Idiot, I don't need you to tell me that!" Lelouch replied, and began running.

As Lelouch looked over his shoulder, he could see that after Suzaku cut down a wall of vines, another one immediately grew in its place. It seemed as if Suzaku would be busy for a while, but that was fine for Lelouch. Lelouch would lure the attacker away himself.

As Lelouch had hoped, the attacker left Suzaku and followed Lelouch.

* * *

'_I will lure you away...'_ Lelouch thought as he ran almost blindly through the forest. _'It is me you want, right? I won't let you harm Suzaku!' _Lelouch came to a stop when he found himself at the centre of a clearing in the forest. The moon, as if it was a spotlight, illuminated the clearing and the surrounding trees.

"Finally…" the attacker said in a high-pitched voice. "I have caught up to you, master" it was a feminine voice.

Cautiously Lelouch turned his head. His eyes widened when he saw the familiar face in front of him.

"So it was you all along..." Lelouch said to the smirking witch in front of him, the witch who he had met not that long ago "C.C."

"I'm so happy you remember me!" C.C. said sarcastically.

"It was you who added that note to the letter, wasn't it?" Lelouch stated "What do you plan on doing, ambushing me like this?"

"What a silly question, Lelouch! Aren't we both in the same boat?" C.C. asked. When Lelouch only raised a questioning eyebrow, she continued "Nunnally misses you, you know?"

His sister's name immediately caught Lelouch's attention.

"What does Nunnally have to do with this?"

"Why everything, Lelouch" C.C. drawled, as she floated in slow circles around Lelouch "Master vi Britannia invited you to a special event, right after he captured Nunnally. What do you think is going to happen in his special event?"

Lelouch's blood ran cold. _'It can't be...'_

"But it is" C.C. said.

'_What?' _Lelouch thought _'Did I say that aloud, or can this witch read my thoughts?' _

C.C. smirked evilly as she came around to face Lelouch in front again. She placed her hands on his shoulders, and slowly bent down, her face next to Lelouch's.

"If you don't want your fear of seven years ago to become a reality, you have to face it, alone. Leave your dog behind, and come to the palace, alone. Only with you there and you alone, will Nunnally be saved"

The witch's voice caused Lelouch to drift into a dumbfounded silence. Only a small part of Lelouch managed to resist the witch's charm from consuming him entirely. His inner voice of reason shouted out against the intrusive outsider.

C.C. sensed the mental barriers kicking into high gear, and withdrew. The seed had already been planted. Given enough time, it would bloom into the flower capable of fulfilling C.C.'s desires.

"I suggest you think wisely about your next course of action, and the sacrifices you are willing to make" C.C. said before twirling through conjured up mist and disappearing.

Suddenly alone again, Lelouch felt his mental control returning to him all at once, causing him to fall to his knees. A sharp pain shot through his head.

'_That damn witch...'_ Lelouch thought resentfully. Lelouch knew what he needed to do, but he could not yet wrap his throbbing mind around the resolve to go through with it.

* * *

"Lelouch, where are you?" Suzaku called as he ran in the direction that Lelouch went in earlier. After Lelouch had left, the attacker left as well. After a while, the vines disappeared too.

'_Why did the vines suddenly disappear?'_ Suzaku wondered _'Did something happen to you, Lelouch?'_

Before Suzaku's imagination could fly off to the worst-case scenario, he came to a dead stop when he saw a lone figure standing in the midst of an illuminated part of the forest. The slender build and dark hair of the person was unmistakable.

"Hey, Lelouch!" Suzaku called out. Lelouch didn't react.

"Lelouch?" Suzaku asked again once he stood in front of Lelouch. Lelouch just stared out in front of him. The light in his eyes was fading, his gaze lost in an infinite darkness that Suzaku couldn't see.

"Shit, I never should have left you alone!" Suzaku reprimanded himself as he pulled Lelouch into a tight hug. At the sudden contact, Lelouch snapped back to his senses, as if he had awoken from a bad dream.

"Suzaku?"

"Thank goodness!" Suzaku said as he pulled away. "You were really out of it for a moment! Are you okay?"

Lelouch paused, as if he was seriously considering Suzaku's question.

"I'm fine" he answered.

"Good. You find a nice place, hey? Let's rest here for the night" Suzaku said and led Lelouch to one of the trees. "I'll quickly make a fire, okay?"

Lelouch nodded his response.

Once the fire was ablaze, Suzaku went and sat next to Lelouch.

"So...want to tell me what happened?" Suzaku asked.

"Hmm" Lelouch said quietly "About your earlier questions…" Lelouch began, surprising Suzaku.

'_Eh, he's going to talk about that now?'_

"It happened seven years ago. My sister's power, the ability to make a hybrid like me turn into a dragon or human at will, flourished"

"A hybrid like you? Are there others?" Suzaku asked. Lelouch nodded.

"Everyone who is part of the vi Britannia clan are hybrids, and can turn into dragons"

"What? Then, does that mean you're...?"

"That's right. I'm also part of the despicable Dragon Clan"

"Wait wait" Suzaku gestured wildly with his arms "So then that means that this Charles person, Princess Euphemia and her sister are..?"

"That's right. They're all my family"

Suzaku stayed quiet for a moment. "Why'd you leave them then?" he asked. Lelouch's eyes narrowed.

"Charles, the leader of the vi Britannia clan and my father wanted to use my sister and exploit her power for his own good. However, if he forces my sister to turn everyone in the clan into their dragon forms, she would not survive it. That's why I had to stop _him._"

"I stirred the people of Pendragon into a frenzy, inciting a type of Civil war based on conflicting ideals. I used the war as a cover to escape with my sister. However, _he _discovered my plan and had me pursued."

"Do you understand now, Suzaku? Why he captured Nunnally?" Lelouch asked.

"It's because he wants to exploit her power...:"

"I will not let it happen. I refused to let it happen in the past, and I refuse to let it happen now." Lelouch finished off.

"Well then" Suzaku said "We'll tackle the capital tomorrow together, right?"

Instead of the immediate affirmation Suzaku expected, he received a doubtful silence.

"There's one last thing I have to tell you" Lelouch said solemnly. "Seven years ago, when your village was attacked...it was my fault"

"Eh…?" Suzaku asked, excitement faltering "What do you mean?"

"The pursuers my father sent after me caught up to me just as I flew over an isolated village in the forest. My pursuers demanded that I hand over Nunnally in exchange for the lives of the people in a village. One life for a hundred lives; the moral choice was simple, right? But my only concern was Nunnally, so I refused. You know what happened afterwards. That dragon you saw...was me"

Suzaku's eyes widened in disbelief and horror. He was at a loss for words. A bomb like that was not an easy thing to process. What disturbed Suzaku the most was his feelings. Or rather, that his feelings were absent. There was a certain numbness inside of him. The type of numbness that kills all other feelings, making it also impossible to think. Impossible to process. anything.

"Heh" Lelouch gave a sad, low laugh "You must despise me now" Lelouch said softly. but Suzaku heard it. "I think it is better for you not to become any more involved in this than you already are. That way, you won't get hurt by me and the Britannia clan anymore."

Suzaku felt something jerk his senses back to reality. Suzaku looked up. Lelouch's back was to him, and Lelouch was already a few steps away.

Suzaku wanted to shout, to scream, to say anything that would stop Lelouch, but no sounds would come out. Suzaku wanted to run after Lelouch, but his feet were firmly rooted in place. He wanted to move, wanted to go after Lelouch, but his body kept him rooted in place.

Was that Suzaku's true desire? Did Suzaku want Lelouch to leave?

Lelouch stopped, and for a moment, for Suzaku; the light of hope and reconciliation shone. However, just as quickly as it came, it vanished. It was but a flicker of hope that Suzaku had seen. A flicker of the last remaining embers among the ash of a burnt-out fire of passion.

"Farewell, Suzaku" said Lelouch, his figure becoming a mere silhouette as he went into the trees, into the darkness, and at last disappearing into the night.

.

.

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* * *

**A/N:** Hey guys, thank you for reading! Things are going to start getting heavy from now on! Sorry for the late update, there was one part in the chapter that didn't want to work together with me...but I'm glad we sorted out our differences!

Beta'd by **Icy-Kitty-117**.

Please review and tell me what you think about where the story is going/ should go :-)

Thanks to all those who read/ reviewed/ followed & favorited the story! You guys know I appreciate it! Thanks to **InsanePurpleLover** (*squeels in delight becuase of awesome compliment* Thank you so much!), **A Random Person** (Hehe does this chap answer your (good, btw) question? Things are gonna get hectic from now on, and yes, there will be a 'Zero' in this story but *no spoilers* :P Thank you, as always!), **NessaTheSinner** (Hm well you're right it was really spontaneous, but I think the feeling Suzaku has for Lelouch now is more dependence than anything else, and yeah there's always room for more growth. Sankyuu!) and **Fic's Sly Lover** (Yay a new friend! Welcome, and thanks for the review! I'm glad you like it and I hope to keep writing well!)

**P.S.** I have a bunch of tests next week and I;m going to go on vacation the week after, so I'll be back with one (or two) chapters the week after that, so I'll see you guys then!


	9. Divide and Search

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Code Geass

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 9: Divide and Search

"_The pursuers my father sent after me demanded that I hand over Nunnally in exchange for the lives of the people in a village we had flown over at the time. One life for a hundred lives; the moral choice was obvious. But my only concern was Nunnally, so I refused. You know what happened afterwards."_

.

.

"_Heh" Lelouch gave a sad, low laugh "You must despise me now" he said softly, "but I think it is better for you do not get anymore involved in this. Even if only because you don't want to get hurt by me and the vi Britannia clan anymore."_

.

.

"_Farewell, Suzaku"_

Lelouch's last words to Suzaku echoed in Lelouch's head as he made his way through the dimly moonlit forest. He arrived at the river which separated the forest from the Wetlands. Lelouch stared at the little spots of moon light that danced across the water's surface. Lelouch's thoughts wandered back to his earlier confrontation with Suzaku.

The image of Suzaku's distraught face, after Lelouch had revealed the truth to him, was burned into Lelouch's conscience. Every time the image involuntarily appeared at the front of Lelouch's mind, a pang shot through Lelouch's heart. It ached. Lelouch suspected that it was guilt, but there was something odd yet familiar about separating from Suzaku.

It was the type of sad longing that Lelouch had felt over the last few days every time he thought of Nunnally. Yet, at the same time, it was a different. It was a more intense feeling. Every time Lelouch thought about Nunnally, he thought critically about what would be the best and fastest way to save her. Lelouch never lost sight of his goal. With Suzaku, it was a whole different ball game. Every time Lelouch thought about Suzaku, his thoughts were jumbled. He couldn't make heads or tail of his thoughts. There was a certain feeling of desperation and sadness attached to it. For once, Lelouch was uncertain about his goal, and which path to take. A part of Lelouch pulled him towards Suzaku, yet another part of him wanted to stay away from him to protect him.

Which is why Lelouch found that he had arrived at the river once gain, after returning from the clearing for the umpteenth time. Lelouch had already come to a descision, but it was taking the first step towards that resolve that was ultimately more difficult than coming to the resolve itself.

* * *

"_Heh" Lelouch gave a sad, low laugh "You must despise me now" he said softly, "but I think it is better for you do not get anymore involved in this. Even if only because you don't want to get hurt by me and the vi Britannia clan anymore."_

_._

_._

_Suzaku wanted to shout, to scream, to say anything that would stop Lelouch, but no sounds would come out. Suzaku wanted to run after Lelouch, but his feet were rooted in place. He wanted to move, wanted to go after Lelouch, but his body kept him rooted in place._

_._

_._

"_Farewell, Suzaku"_

_Just as quickly as it came, it disappeared. It was but a flicker of hope that Suzaku had seen; a flicker of the last remaining embers among the ash of a burnt out fire of passion._

Again and again, Lelouch's words played over in Suzaku's head. It was as if his memories were a broken tape-recorder, stuck on his and Lelouch's last confrontation. Suzaku slammed the ground with his fists as he remembered his inability to move when Lelouch walked away from him.

Suzaku cursed and wondered why his body refused to move. To an extent, Suzaku could understand. After all, who wouldn't be shocked after hearing that a person they deeply care for was the one who wiped out everything they knew and loved? It was not an easy hurdle to get over. This could be why Suzaku was still kneeling in the same spot where Lelouch had left him.

Suzaku fell on his side, fireflies ascending all around him. He mused over his next move; should he go after Lelouch and try to talk everything out with him, maybe find some way to forgive him? Or should he return...wait; where would Suzaku return to? He doesn't have a home anymore and have traveled for the last 8 years. He could go back to travelling, but the prospect of that looked even bleaker.

An image of Lelouch's back appeared in Suzaku's head, but Suzaku pushed it out, searching for alternatives. Suzaku had been together with Lelouch almost permanently for the last few days, so imagining himself anywhere else was extremely difficult. No matter in which direction Suzaku looked, he would always see Lelouch's back, or even worse, Lelouch's apologetic and guilt-filled eyes. Suzaku rolled over to his other side, thinking of which town he could go to next, but again he only saw images of himself with Lelouch.

Suzaku felt tears hammering on the walls of his will, fighting for freedom. But Suzaku was resilient, at least for a while. His walls began to shake and with a sob, his walls broke.

Tears flowed down his cheeks as he remembered his family, then lying on top of a newly transformed Lelouch, his village on fire, to him flying through the sky with Lelouch, back to his weary father collapsed against a tree in the forest, followed by the face of the dark dragon, and finally a shot of Lelouch's despair filled eyes.

Suzaku tried to withhold the sobs, but his body kept shaking. Suzaku tried to control himself, and calm himself down, succeeding a bit. He didn't know how long he had lied in the same place. A wave of drowsiness came over Suzaku, and he drifted off into a seemingly deep sleep.

A rustling in the bushes brought Suzaku back before he could cross the lake to dreamland.

"Wait...I'm telling you to wait!" came an irritated voice.

"It is fine, we've waited long enough, let's go!" a more chirpy voice insisted.

"Shh, look he's still sleeping!" the other pointed out with a sigh, at which Suzaku opened one eye.

A blob of ginger clouded his vision, until his eyes began to focus and Suzaku could make out more; green eyes, cat ears, distinct hair colour and a lean body any swimmer would be jealous of.

"Wha...Shirley?" Suzaku asked and he sat up.

"See, I told you! Now you woke him up" the other voice came, a voice that belonged to the happy-go-lucky blue-haired Rivalz. The crane Sayaka stood behind Rivalz.

"You guys...what are you doing here?" Suzaku asked, his words a bit slurred but at least sensible. "Didn't Lelouch send you back to Milly?"

The question caught both of them by surprise. Rivalz shuffled his feet uncomfortably while Shirley stared at the ground, excavating it for inspiration, clearly having forgotten her many well-planned out and rehearsed excuses for suddenly appearing.

"Hah well about that…" Shirley laughed nervously. She looked at Suzaku and saw him scrutinizing her. She buckled under the pressure.

"We did but I just wanted to see you and Lelouch again after you saved us you were so cool I love you guys and wanted to thank you so we came back...I guess?" Shirley fangirled at top speed without pausing to breathe.

Suzaku was not too happy about Shirley's declaration, in fact he was very saddened by it, for Lelouch was no longer with him and thus Shirley's desires could not become true.

Instead of admitting the truth, Suzaku looked away and stayed silent. Shirley noticed Suzaku's silence, and she knew why, but the reason was stupid because she already knew what Suzaku was trying to hide. The silence frustrated Shirley, and she gave in.

"Ahh Geez I'm sorry…" Shirley started to say but Rivalz touched her shoulder and shook his head once and stepped forward.

"See the truth is...we didn't go back to Milly. We waited for a day after you left and then followed you swiftly, until now." Rivalz explained, before coughing awkwardly "We also saw what happened...between you and Lelouch"

The statement caught Suzaku's attention, and Suzaku looked up at Rivalz, who gave him a sympathetic look.

"Is that so? I'm sorry you had to hear that" Suzaku said, slightly annoyed. He didn't like being eavesdropped on or being pitied; he had endured enough pity when had just started out on his journey. "Unfortunately, as you can see and probably already know, Lelouch isn't here anymore"

"Right, but that's why we came to you" Rivalz said, followed by Shirley.

"We want to help you find Lelouch"

"I don't need, or want, your help"

"Maybe you don't want our help, but what about Sayaka's?" Rivalz asked, pointing towards the crane behind him.

"What can she do?" Suzaku asked with a snort.

"She can track Lelouch's scent" Shirley pointed out.

"...What? How can she do that?"

"Yeah, I mean how do you think we found you? It's all thanks to Sayaka's nose!" Rivalz praised, fondly petting Sayaka.

"I see" Suzaku was careful not to seem too eager, but this was an ideal chance for Suzaku to find Lelouch and once and for all sort things out with him. He still had a mission to complete after all.

"Thank you, I will appreciate your help" Suzaku agreed, earning relieved cheers from his new companions.

"Alright, next stop: Pendragon!" Rivalz said, fist-pumping the air.

* * *

A soft wind was blowing as Lelouch made his way towards the clearing in the forest, trying not of think of Suzaku. It was difficult, because every time Lelouch heard the wind, he thought he heard Suzaku's voice. When Lelouch was relieved when reached the clearing, because he didn't have to worry about the fear or disappointment of meeting or not meeting Suzaku.

Lelouch looked around, and, the same as with his first two times at the clearing, the witch wasn't there. However, being a witch, Lelouch suspected that she had her eyes and ears everywhere, so if he called out to her, she might appear.

"Witch!" Lelouch called out to the night "Witch, C.C., I wish to speak with you" he called again.

At first nothing, then the echo of a sultry voice.

"I've been waiting for you, Lelouch" the voice purred "I hope you have come with a favorable answer" C.C. said before appearing in the wake of a bright green mist.

Lelouch closed his eyes and took a deep breath, before answering.

"I have decided to go to the capital and meet Charles, as he requested." C.C. looked pleased with Lelouch's answer, but he wasn't done yet. "On one condition" Lelouch said, causing C.C. to lift a perfectly formed eyebrow. "I get to meet with Nunnally first, and confirm her safety. Afterwards, if possible, I want to stay with her during Royale'"_ 'and hopefully return with her once the charade is finished'_ Lelouch added in his head.

"I knew you'd come around sooner or later, Lelouch-sama" the levitating C.C. laughed as a carriage drawn by two magnificent horses came to a stop before them. "But just in case you got cold feet, I brought some extra persuasion and reason"

"What do you mean?" Lelouch asked, and the door of the carriage opened. A familiar person stepped out and a wave of memories unwillingly flooded Lelouch's mind.

_It was a peaceful time, before the Surge of the Dragon Clan and before Lelouch could see over the chess table without having two cushions propped up on the seat._

_Lelouch, who had recently began mastering the game of chess, was distraught after Schneizel threw his whole battle strategy into disarray with a single move._

"_Lelouch let me give you a piece of advice" Schneizel spoke up, noticing Lelouch's distress. Lelouch looked up at his older brother with expectation "Never reveal your emotions to your opponent, for they could use it to their advantage. "Even momentary hesitation can be used to strike you down" Schneizel said before he called checkmate._

"Schneizel" Lelouch greeted, stiffly nodding his head.

"It has been a long time, Lelouch"

"You truly are a witch" Lelouch commented, looking sideways at C.C and ignoring Schneizel's fond greeting.

"Oh Lelouch, flattery will get you nowhere" C.C. laughed.

"I see you are still bad with the women, little brother."

"Is it true that you were the one who stole Nunnally from me?" Lelouch asked, completely disregarding Schneizel's comment as unimportant.

"The same as always, I see. You would rather ask about the well-being of the little sister you have not seen in two days than that of the brother you have not seen in 8 years?"

"Of course. Nunnally's the only reason I am going along with this charade"

"Oh, a charade, you say? And what is it that you believe you can do against this 'charade'?"

"After I have met with _that ma_n, I will confirm Nunnally's safety and stay with her, protecting her until we can leave that wretched hell hole."

"You are the same as always. You still think you can go up against Father and his wishes? It seems that last time Father let you off too easily. Clearly being banished 8 years ago for disobedience did not teach you your lesson. The lesson, Lelouch, that you still need to learn, is to never disrespect your elders and go against their authority." Schneizel lectured "We will make sure to drive the message home this time during our special magic exhibition"

"I do not care about your little display of power. My only concern is Nunnally, and I will not let you misuse her, as you did in the past." Lelouch vowed.

"Oh Lelouch…" Schneizel started, as a mist of glitter descended from the air over Lelouch, surprising him. "Such big words from someone who thinks they have power, but in reality, have already lost everything."

"Wha…?" Lelouch started coughing. _Sleeping power?_ Lelouch wondered, his vision going blurry before he collapsed on the ground. With his last bit of consciousness, Lelouch looked up at C.C., and saw that it was all her doing. "You witch… you have really outdone yourself...this time" Lelouch's breathing became more strained "I will settle this with you...later"

"Oh Lelouch, haven't I told you that flattery will get you nowhere?" C.C. asked with a pitying smile.

"Sleeping powder...is that not a magic too pure for a witch like you?" Schneizel asked their freeloading witch.

"That's right...don't you think it makes me look more like a fairy?" C.C. agreed playfully.

"Nonsense. You are too far removed from the good and the righteous to ever become a true fairy, so do not fool yourself" Schneizel said, throwing the passed-out Lelouch's arm over his shoulder before carrying him into the carriage.

"True...what a shame. Well I'll be going on ahead" C.C. said, before flying out in front of the carriage, the carriage following soon after.

* * *

Sayaka flew through the forest, zigzagging her way through the trees.

"Fast! Too fast!" Rivalz shouted, holding on to the saddle for heaven and for earth, too bad that both were so far away at that moment.

"You sure Sayaka's going the right way? And that she won't get lost?" Suzaku asked, shouting over his shoulder at Rivalz.

"Like I said; we found you, didn't we? Just trust Sayaka's nose, man!" Rivalz insisted.

"Ah look, it's the capital!" Shirley exclaimed, pointing to the distance where the trees were starting to thin out. "I can see a part of the town!"

"Alright, we made it!" Rivalz cheered, bouncing up and down the saddle before becoming air sick again.

Suzaku wasn't as cheerful though, for he knew of the dangers that awaited them.

"I think we better land soon, it is better if we don't go into the town as we are" Suzaku said, piquing the interest of Sayaka and her two hybrid-animal companions.

"Eh why?" Shirley asked as Sayaka slowed down.

"Remember that time when Lelouch and I saved you from the sky palace?" Suzaku asked, and was answered with two nods. "Cornelia's knights were pursuing Lelouch at that time, but we were there with him so the knights probably saw our faces. If they see us now and recognize us, they will capture and interrogate us for information about Lelouch." Suzaku explained.

"Oh you're right...those knights were really strong, and fast!" Rivalz recalled.

"So what do you suggest we do?" Shirley asked.

"Well...I think it's something that you would be the best at out of all of us here, Shirley" Suzaku hinted.

"Something that I would be the best at…?" Shirley echoed, the wheels turning at full speed in her mind, until it came to a certain point and a light bulb went off. "Ah!" Shirley said, having an eureka moment. "Leave it to me!" Shirley said.

Sayaka landed in a dense and rocky part of the forest, and upon contact with the mountainous area, Shirley jumped off excitedly and called back to them that she'd be back soon.

"What just happened?" Rivalz asked, not having followed Shirley's train of thought.

"You'll see, she'll be back soon" Suzaku said, amused with Shirley's excitement.

Suzaku may not have noticed it, but Rivalz could tell that Suzaku's mood had lightened ever since they had set out on finding Lelouch. Suzaku must have been really distraught after his and Lelouch's argument, but despite that Rivalz could see that Suzaku still cared and wanted to sort things out, and maybe reconcile, with Lelouch. Also, Rivalz secretly hoped that his and Shirley's presence had also helped Suzaku to unwind a bit. If that was true, it would have made Rivalz happy.

"Hey Suzaku, are you excited about meeting Lelouch again?" Rivalz asked, teasingly.

"What brought that about..?"

"I'm back!" Shirley called, waving as she ran up to them.

"Welcome back Shirley" Suzaku greeted casually.

"What the...that was really fast! How did you get that many clothes so fast? Weren't women suppose to normally take up to two hours per boutique?" Rivalz questioned, really surprised.

"Normally yes, but this was no normal shopping spree! This was for an emergency, and I don't know if you've ever paid enough attention to notice, but girls are especially fast when it comes to emergencies. Emergencies like emergency dates or important missions, like this one!" Shirley chirped.

"Thanks, good to know" Rivalz said as Shirley stuffed his clothes into his arms. He was growing really afraid of women's shopping power, emergency or not.

"And here, for you" Shirley said, handing Suzaku a set of matching garments "I think this will look really good on you!"

"Thank you. Well then, we'll go change then," Suzaku said, looking back at Shirley "seeing as you are already dressed"

"She is?" Rivalz asked, for the first time taking a good look at Shirley's clothes. She was wearing a maroon colored dress with a long-sleeved white linen shirt underneath. Over this she wore a light pink corset over her middle. The corset was tied together with old, worn-out leather strings. To top of the look and to hide her cat ears, She wore a leather hat, but the color was already starting to fade, showing a brown patch here and there.

"Oh wow…" Rivalz drawled.

"You look really pretty" Suzaku said. Shirley was thankful but Suzaku caught the look of disappointment before she covered it up with her smile. "Or would you rather have me call you beautiful?" Suzaku asked.

"Eh..? No, you don't have to! Please, don't mind me! In any case, w-we should get a move on…"

"Alright, we'll be back soon then." Suzaku said, and he and Rivalz disappeared into the trees.

Shirley berated herself for her earlier stuttering. Suzaku's compliment was so sudden that it surprised her more than it should have. But Shirley would remain strong. After all, she had become very taken with Lelouch after the valiant man and his companion saved them. Although this companion of Lelouch turned out to be an interesting person as well...Shirley had heard many fables regarding Lelouch, and from these stories it was clear that Lelouch would never trust someone so easily. Yet, from what Shirley had heard and seen herself, it sounded as if Suzaku waltzed into Lelouch's life and had breezed through ever since. He might not show it, but Shirley noticed how Suzaku's anxiousness from the argument progressed into hope of reconciliation. It was truly wonderful, ans Shirley was happy if she had even a had a small influence on this progression.

Rivalz returned, fully clothed in a faded-brown tunic, belted with a rather thick leather belt. The trousers loosely fitted Rivalz. "Nice choice, although you kind of got the trousers wrong..." he complained.

"It should be that way!" Shirley said as she threw Rivalz a loaf.

"What is this?" Rivalz asked, looking at the loaf as if it was an exotic article.

"Your prop" Shirley explained cheerily. "You're our bread-seller! So better get into character soon. We'll be counting on you, Mr. Bakerman" Shirley winked.

"And my role?" Asked Suzaku, coming up to them from behind.

"It should already be clear! You're the…" Shirley said, spun around before the appearance of the man before her cut off her sentence "...knight" Shirley finished in a daze.

Suzaku was the model image of a medieval knight, clothed in linen, an arming coat, wooden stockings, closed shoes, and a robe conveniently embroidered with the Dragon clan's coat of arms. Everything was in colors of blue, white and gold.

"I knew it would look perfect! It will definitely look good for tomorrow!"

"Tomorrow?" Suzaku questioned.

"This" Shirley said, and held a flyer out for Suzaku to read. "It was posted up all over the town"

**ROYAL ANNOUNCEMENT**

**Our humble kingdom welcomes the return of two of our lost kin!**

**Join us as we celebrate this glorious occasion with a special event of Pendragon's Annual Battle Royale!  
**

**This show will feature magic thought to be extinct in a wonderful display of power, and is not to be missed!**

**Festivities start tomorrow.**

**All Hail Britannia!**

"Rather flamboyant with their word choice, wouldn't you say?" Rivalz commented.

"Shit…" Suzaku cursed under his breath. "This is what I was afraid of…Two of their lost kin? Tomorrow? Does that mean that they already have Lelouch? And if they do, will he also be partaking in this 'special event'?" _'and_ _if he is fighting, _will_ he_ be_ fighting alone?' _Suzaku wondered frantically, going through all the worst case scenarios in his head.

"I don't know...but it's no use sitting here and contemplating it." Shirley urged.

"You're right" Suzaku agreed "We'll need to somehow become a part of this circus performance and stop the charade"

"We can sell buns in the stands?" Rivalz suggested, holding up his loaf of bread.

"You can, but I don't intend to be just another spectator. I'm going to go into the village and see if I can find a way to enter and become part of this 'Battle Royale'." Suzaku said.

"That outfit will definitely help, I knew it was be a good choice! Good job, me!" Shirley congratulated herself.

"Right. Thank you, Shirley. Well, I'll be going on ahead then." Suzaku started and charged toward the village.

"Wait!" Rivalz called after Suzaku, who was already too far away. "What are we going to do about Sayaka?" Rivalz asked.

Shirley looked up at Sayaka in thought.

"We can send Sayaka back to Milly with a message saying that we are okay. 'Okay' for now anyway…" Shirley added.

"Good idea. Would you mind Sayaka?" Rivalz asked.

Sayaka shook her head, and soon was flying off with the letter attached to her saddle.

"Alright, let's go and catch up with our wannabee knight" Rivalz said as he started in the direction of the town.

"Wait, I'm the one who knows the town best, if we follow you we're never going to find Suzaku anyway!" Shirley protested, hot on Rivalz's heels.

A Pair of eyes followed the two hybrid animals as they rushed toward the village. The cloaked man had been out on a mission scouting the villages, but got bored so he went into forest. _'Who knew boredom could yield such productive results?'_

'_But never mind that. I need to report my findings to the boss soon, otherwise it will be too late and this would have all been for nothing!'_

The man came out from his hiding place between the leaves, and jumped from branch to branch towards the village.

* * *

"Yo boss" A man named Tamaki said as he walked into the temporary base of his resistance group. It was an old abandoned warehouse in the outskirts of the village, where only the poor lived and the rich feared to tread. "Anything new on the movements of those royal bastards?"

"Nothing yet" Tohdoh, his boss, said as he took a smoke of his cigar.

"Damn, we know that something going to go down, but we don't know what!" Tamaki said, frustrated.

"Calm down, Tamaki" Ohgi, his superior by one rank, said as he came up from behind. Ohgi saluted Tohdoh. "One of our scouts has returned, and he says that he has come with some useful information"

Tohdoh nodded in recognition, and Ohgi signalled the scout to come in.

"Oh Sugiyama!" Tamaki greeted excitedly, but was completely ignored by Sugiyama.

"Sir!" Sugiyama saluted "Suzaku and his two companions are in the capital. However, Lelouch is not with them. It appears that he is with the Clan and, according to Suzaku, will most likely appear in tomorrow's festivities. What role he plays is unknown, though"

"I see…" Tohdoh said. _'So Suzaku had separated from Lelouch, and now Suzaku has two new companions?' _he surmised. "What will the white knights next move be?"

"His companions and him have obtained disguises, and Suzaku plans to use his to get into the Battle Royale"

"So he intends to fight?" Tohdoh deduced "Interesting, I think we should join them."

"Sir?"

"Sugiyama. Follow Suzaku and find out how he intends to get into the Battle Royale, and if he succeeds, report to me."

"Yes sir!"

"Ohgi, once we know which plan is a success, I will leave it to you to execute efficiently."

"Understood."

"And Tamaki…" Tohdoh addressed his unruly soldier "I need you to be on standby for shopping duty."

"Roger...wait WHAT?" Tamaki said "Why the hell should I do that? Ask Inoue, it's her kind of job anyway!"

"Now Tamaki, we do not stereotype in this resistance group. Besides, you have impeccable fashion sense. I have seen it."

"WHA..?" Tamaki wanted to shout, blushing slightly. "That's so unfair!"

"Alright, now that you all have your order, go!" Tohdoh ordered.

"Yes sir!" They all said in unison and set out to carry out their orders, albeit some reluctantly.

'_Suzaku...'_ Tohdoh thought, addressing Suzaku as if the youth was standing before him _'I cannot believe that you, a knight, have become separated from your lord. How foolish. If you're going to separate with your lord only to be heroic and save him later on, then it is better to not get separated from him in the first place'_

_To Be Continued_

* * *

**A/N: **Hey guys, thanks for reading, I hope you all enjoyed it!

I am so sorry for the delay in updating, so here's a super long chapter! I know I promised that this chapter would have been out last week, but stuff happened and I got busy. My college exams are coming up, but I'm sill going to try to update when I can! I hope it haven't been that long and that you've lost the thread of the story, but if you did, I put some flashbacks in this chapter so that we can know where we are in the story.

Thanks to reviewers: **A Random Person** (Thanks for all your support, you are awesome!), **InsanePurpleLove** (Thanks, it was really fun! Sorry it took so long. I hope you enjoy!), **NessatheSinner** (Hahaha dat reaction...though I don't know if what you're saying is a compliment or if I should be worried...^^") & **Deidara4ever** (Hey! Welcome to the family. Sorry it took so long, hope you enjoy!). Thank you to **all** those who favorited/followed, you are the butter to my bread, the jelly to my peanut butter! XD

**P.S.** Question for reviewers: Is it okay if I reply to your messages in the A/N or do you prefer private messages?

See ya!


	10. Prelude to Madness

**Disclaimer:** I do not and never will own Code Geass.

**ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 10: Prelude to Madness

Luscious green leaves were slowly replaced by bright and shining crystal ones as Sayoko neared Milly's lair. She had reached the Crystal Forest in record time, despite the responsibility of being the bearer of such important news weighing heavily on her neck.

Once Sayoko saw the tranquil stream that was the life force of the forest, she knew she was close to home. It wasn't long before she reached the Mother Tree; Milly's lair.

"I'm home!" Sayoko called as she landed at the hallow tree's entrance.

"Oh Sayoko and…" Milly wanted to greet before realizing that it was only Sayoko "Where are your friends? Why are you alone?"

"Regarding that, I have an important…"

"ENCHANTRESS!" they heard a furious shout from above. Milly sighed as she looked up.

"What is it this time?" Milly asked, slightly annoyed. She looked up and saw Kallen, the Crimson Dragon, coming at her from above.

"Do not feign ignorance! You know well why I am here! I want you to return my Guren Gem to me!"

"Ah yes, it the same reason as last week. I thought you have learnt your lesson by now"

"Do not get ahead of yourself; I have become much more powerful than before!" Kallen defended herself as she charged her power within her mouth before releasing a powerful fire breath.

"Sayoko!" Milly called and Sayoko instantly picked her up, dodging the fire onslaught just in time. Sayoko took to the sky, ascending until she reached an altitude just a little higher than that of the fuming crimson dragon. "Take me closer!"

"Yes ma'am!" Sayoko said, afraid but willing to trust her leader. As soon as Sayoko reached a close enough distance, Milly twirled her staff and swept it across the air, invoking a magic circle.

"Mirror reflection!" Milly called, surrounding Kallen from all sides with mirrors, caging her within her own reflections. Kallen was temporarily fazed, not knowing where to look. She quickly regained her focus though, and invoked all her magic into a great burst of fire magic from her tail, shattering the glass that surrounded her.

It was no use, as a magic circle still hovered beneath Kallen. She cursed and looked up. It was just in time to see Sayoko, with Milly onboard coming at her from above.

"Caught you" Milly said, leaping from Sayoko while spinning her staff above her head, charging it with magic power. With a wink the Enchantress pierced Kallen's wing with the tip of her spear, crystallizing both wings. With practiced eased Milly dropped back into Sayoko's saddle.

"_Darn, a misstep!' _Kallen cursed as she felt her wings hardening, making it more and more difficult to stay a flight. Not being able to move her wings, she tumbled through the branches of the crystal trees. She landed on the floor with a hard thump.

"Okay, now that that's over we can continue where we left off" Milly said, taking out the letter and reading it.

"Right" Sayoko agreed.

"Talking so casually in the presence of an enemy...Don't look down on me!" Kallen snapped, trying to free her wings but it is in vain. She tried to release a fire breath, but it came out as nothing more than mere puffs.

"What? Lelouch will be taking care in the Battle Royale at Pendragon tomorrow?" Milly exclaimed "We need to help him!"

"Shh!" Sayoko shushed Milly "I know we need to help Lelouch, but what good will it do if we alert another enemy of his presence?" Sayoko said, discreetly pointing to the Dragon behind them, who perked its ears.

"Oh right…but Sayoko, I will not able to go and help. I have my hands full here." Milly explained apologetically. Kallen was really interested, now.

"I can't either, not after two days' worth of heavy travel!" Kallen's tail began to wag excitedly like that of a dog.

"Hmm if only we had someone who could go for us…" Milly drawled. Kallen could not contain her excitement any longer.

"I'll go!" Kallen offered.

"What?" Sayoko asked, incredulous. "Why should we trust you; you who will the first chance you get to kill him!"

"Of course, but before I can have my revenge on him, I have to make sure that nobody else gets to him first, am I right?"

"Good answer. Alright, you can go, but only after you show that you can free yourself" Milly set the condition.

"That's a simple task!" Kallen said as she charged magic into her wings. With a burst of energy flames erupted from her wings, thereby freeing her, and lifting her off into the sky.

"Wait for me, Enchantress! As soon as I have dealt with Lelouch, you're next!" Kallen called over her shoulder before heading in the direction of the capital.

"Eh is that okay, ma'am? Isn't she going to go after Lelouch and the others now?" Sayoko questioned.

"It's fine, since that persistent creature finally left. Lelouch might as well be our diversion for once, wouldn't you say?"

"No ma'am, not really...I do owe a lot to them, after all. I don't want them to be hurt"

"Don't worry; they're big boys who can take care of themselves."

'_At least, I think so' _Milly thought_. _She could only hope that Lelouch and Nunnally would reach their home safely once more. _'Save your sister, Lelouch! I did not lend you one of my best cranes just for you to return empty-handed!"_

* * *

Many stars already donned the night sky when the carriage arrived at the Castle's front courtyard. The moon's light outlined every curve of every petal, and it accentuated the sharp edge of every blade of grass. The castle garden at night truly was something to behold.

Schneizel thought that it was a pity that Lelouch was missing it, since he was still asleep due to C.C.'s potent sleeping powder. Lelouch would only see the garden in the morning, when its presentation would be fit to impress the forty hundred spectators that will adorn the castle grounds, but that is also only if Lelouch is lucky.

"Should I arrange for someone to take the guest to his room, sir?" the coach man asked.

'_Oh that's right...'_ Schneizel remembered _'None of the staff working in the castle worked here eight years ago, so it's not surprising that they do not recognize the exiled prince'_

"No, that is not necessary. I shall escort him to his room" Schneizel answered charmingly.

"As you wish, sire" the coachman said with a bow, standing back for Schneizel to step out.

Once outside, Schneizel turned back to the carriage and scooped the sleeping arms into his arms, princess-carrying him into the castle. Most of the castle's household and staff had already retreated to their private quarters, so the halls were empty. The further Schneizel moved into the Castle, the darker and more desolate it grew. In the easternmost hall in the castle, Schneizel came to a stop in front of a door on his left side.

Schneizel shifted Lelouch's weight in his arms so that it appeared as if Schneizel was holding a child,

'_Lelouch had grown so thin...he must have lost a lot of weight while in exile. Not that he was a plump boy to begin with. Poor little brother. He had probably not eaten a passable meal in over eight years, let alone a King's meal.'_ Schneizel thought concerned. Using his now free hand, Schneizel opened the door.

Inside the room a white cloth covered everything. The moon's light shone through the window, creating a rectangular spotlight on the dusty mat. Schneizel made his way towards the bed and place Lelouch on the bed. Schneizel stood for a moment, just looking at his sleeping younger brother.

"Oh Lelouch…" Schneizel sighed, brushing Lelouch's unruly dark locks out of his face. "Why did you have to rebel all those years ago? If you had stayed here, older brother could have protected you. Indeed, I cannot ignore the fact that I also was at fault" he whispered "I, as your older brother, should have known what these past eight years would do to you, and I should not have allowed you go." Schneizel stepped back from the bed, and moved on to the window.

"However," Schneizel continued "We, as Royals of the Dragon Clan Britannia, cannot go against Father's wishes without facing the consequences." he placed a small bouquet of violet irises in a delicate vase on the window sill. "Hopefully you would have learned your lesson by tomorrow, and not make trouble for Father again." Schneizel went to the bed once more.

"May your rebellious spirit and independent soul finally be laid to rest tomorrow; not only for your sake, but for our that of your adorable little sister as well." Schneizel affectionately brushed Lelouch's forehead with his own "Tomorrow we are enemies, Lelouch. So sleep tight, my younger brother, for it might be your last" he said with a soft kiss to Lelouch's forehead. Schneizel left the room, and glanced back once, before closing the door and locking it.

"Welcome home, Lelouch"

* * *

"Why are we so few guarding the barracks tonight? Sure the festival is tomorrow and I understand that the guards have to hone their energy, but still!" the guard complained.

"It is true what you said there, my friend." A voice from behind agreed. "They are suppose to be especially vigilant on nights such as these"

"Right? I'm glad someone understands" the guard said happily and turned around to face the newcomer. His eyes widened when he saw the one who addressed him. "You...how?" but it was too late. Something hard hit the guard against his head from behind and he collapsed.

"Sorry, but I sneaked in with this disguise. Who knew it would be so effective?" Suzaku said, pleased with the result of his infiltration. He rummaged through the knocked out guard's clothes until he found what he came for; an identification badge. The exquisite engraving on the gold-colored metal was so incredibly gaudy that it could have only been from that of an egotistical narcissist royal family.

Suzaku tied up the guard up and threw him into one of the warehouse's abandoned rooms. He closed the door and locked it, thinking that after all the excitement is over, Suzaku would come and free the poor man.

Unbeknownst to Suzaku, Sugiyama of Tohdoh's troops saw what he had done, and immediately left, travelling in the shadows of the night until he reached Ohgi. Ohgi was waiting in the bustling night square, casually observing the people.

"Sir!" Sugiyama discreetly saluted. Ohgi's thoughts were clearly somewhere else, as he jumped when Sugiyama suddenly appeared. "What is with that jumpy reaction? Ah, don't tell me? You were thinking of your lovely mistress back home, weren't you?"

"Wha..w-what are yous talked a-b-b-out?" Ohgi stuttered incomprehensibly.

"That reaction totally gives everything away! I don't blame you though...that Viletta woman with the teal hair and yellow eyes is the stuff that makes up men's dreams.

"Stop it immediately!" Ohgi ordered "You're beginning to sound like Tamaki, and no matter how you look at it, that is _not_ a compliment! Now, what news do you bring me?" Sugiyama explained how Suzaku used an old guard uniform to sneak into the barracks and steal one of the guards identification badge. Sugiyama surmised that Suzaku would use that badge to infiltrate the Battle Royale tomorrow.

"I see, thank you for your good work, Sugiyama" Ohgi thanked before he pulled out his walkie-talkie and paged Tamaki.

"Yo, Tamaki here, over" Tamaki responded, in between chewing bites of food.

"Tamaki, don't tell me you men are still at the corn dog stand?! Over"

"Oh, Ohgi-sir! You've got to admit though that you don't get this kind of food around here. It's super rare! Over"

"Whatever you say. Sugiyama just got back to me. We need old guard uniforms and identification badges, you can do that, right? Over"

"Who do you think you're talking to? I am the great Tama...Oi wait! Identification badges? Where the hell do I get that? Over"

"Suzaku infiltrated the barracks where the guards sleep at night. You can ambush a few guards there, just make sure you deal with them properly, so that they don't cause problems for us at a later stage. Over"

"Hoh sounds like my kind of job! Leave it me! Over"

"We're counting on you Tamaki, don't screw this up. Over"

"Yeah yeah, Over" Tamaki drawled, before finishing the last bit of his fifth corn dog. "Alright, fellow b*stards! We're moving out!" Tamaki bellowed.

"Shh...Not so loud, sir!" one of Tamaki's men whispered.

"Oops, my bad" Tamaki apologized, and he and his nine men left in the direction of the barracks.

Between breaking into boutiques and stealing uniforms from the men themselves, Tamaki chose the method that he believed was "less troublesome' and not bothering to find which act was 'the lesser of the two evils according to the eyes of the law". Besides, Tamaki could never steal from a woman, or at least that's what he always likes to say.

Tamaki and his men easily infiltrated the barracks. Separating, they all acquired uniforms and identification badges in different ways. Some stole from the guards on duty, and others stole through more ambitious means. For example Tamaki; he shamelessly infiltrated the men's rooms and stole from there.

It took longer than Tamaki would have liked, but they had to keep Tohdoh and the others in mind. So in the end, they robbed twenty men of their clothes and badges, and locked them up all over the estate. Afterwards, Tamaki and co. returned to the base with the goods.

* * *

"_Big brother…" a small, feminine voice called._

"_Hmm...Nunnally?" Lelouch called out. He thought he had heard his sister call him, but it was too dark and misty, Lelouch couldn't see anything._

"_Big brother…" the voice called again, more urgently._

"_Nunnally, where are you, I can't see you!" Lelouch called out again, also more urgently this time. He looked up, down and sideways, but couldn't see anything in the darkness._

"_Big brother!" the voice practically screamed. Lelouch spun around and stared straight into the eyes of a horrendous beast with dark , red eyes. Right before the hideous beast sat his sister, chained to the ground. "Please...save me…" the horrendous beast opened its mouth around her and..._

"Nunnally!" Lelouch shouted, sitting upright with his hand stretched out before him. Droplets of sweat dropped of his chin. "A nightmare..." Lelouch breathed, clenched his fists. The image of that beast and Nunnally was still fresh in Lelouch's mind, but he could not afford to be rattled. There was something that had to be done, after all.

Lelouch looked around him. White covered everything. Even so it only took Lelouch a moment to recognise his old room.

'_So I'm back at the castle...huh?'_ Lelouch thought angry*, looking at the large window. The white satin curtains stirred as a soft wind blew through the window. The moonlight shone through the window, illuminating the room. _'Being forced to come here against my will...that man hasn't change'_ Lelouch thought in disgust._ 'However, I would have come here anyway. But leaving me alone like this? The old man must be losing his touch'_ he thought, looking around to confirm that he was alone _'Though I must thank him for placing me in such ideal position_' Lelouch stood up from the bed and made his way towards the window.

Looking out of the window, Lelouch could see the most guarded tower of the castle. It was where Nunnally always stayed when they were children, after all. It was why Lelouch chose this room. It was the one room in the castle from where he could watch over Nunnally the best. Lelouch could feel that that was where they were holding his younger sister. While thinking about how atrocious it was to keep a girl under lock and key, Lelouch unconsciously moved his hand across the window sill until it tapped something.

Snapping out of his contemplation, Lelouch looked down at his hand and saw a vase filled with a bouquet of flowers. Violet flowers. The colour immediately sparked an unpleasant feeling in Lelouch. The violet flower bathing in the light of the full moon was so similar to how his mother looked that night.. For some reason Lelouch couldn't pull his eyes away. No matter how Lelouch tried to fight back, the images of that night kept appearing in his head.

The pull of his memories on Lelouch's consciousness were too strong, and soon images of that man's face reappeared in Lelouch's mind over and over, sparking a chain reaction of memories.

_Geass transferred into a still 5-year old Nunnally after leaving Lelouch's mother dead in the wake of its hunger for power. That man issuing an order. Doors slamming. Nunnally resisted before being pulled along mercilessly. A slightly older boy, Lelouch, run after her. The bright colours, lively music and cheerful decoration bringing about excitement, anticipation and celebration. Lelouch stood among a crowd, shouting and pulling, trying to get someone's attention to help. All of the adults, even Lelouch's own brothers and sisters turned his back on him. Lelouch was alone among a crowd. _

_Lelouch desperately shouts for help and it mixes in with Nunnally's screams, her eyes aglow. Former humans twisted and morphed into unrecognisable forms before transforming into the large, hideous creatures; dragons, all dancing like the denizens of the underworld, all turning on Lelouch and Nunnally with all the malicious intent of predators looking down on their prey..._.

"No, stay back!" Lelouch shouted, swinging his arm protectively out in front of him, knocking the vase off of the window sill. The vase fell and petals scattered. Lelouch stumbled back before falling. He looked at his hand, and saw red. He looked around him and saw that an even darker crimson stained all the petals.

Lelouch felt his sanity slipping, but he couldn't let go, not if didn't want what happened eight years ago to happen again. Lelouch looked up at the tower once more, remembering his sister and strengthening his resolve.

'_I have to get to Nunnally! I have to save her, or else…' _Lelouch thought as he clambered towards the door.

Lelouch only had thoughts of saving Nunnally on his mind when he opened the door. It was unavoidable that his one hundred thoughts per second train came to an immediate halt when he saw C.C. suddenly standing at the entrance way of the door.

"C.C.?" Lelouch asked surprised, looking at the green-haired witch.

"What on dear Avalon could you be making such a ruckus for? You're going to wake up all of your neighbours" C.C. said, inviting herself into the room.

"Ha you're a riot" Lelouch said, still standing at the door. "I know that I'm the only one who is staying in this hall of the castle. Most of the people of the household felt that the closer their quarters were to the central throne hall, the more important they were."

"Well, nothing's much changed about that since you left, and now you're back in this room." C.C. said, taking a bite of pepperoni pizza.

"Of course, it is from this room that I have the best view over the tower Nunnally is being held in"

"Everything is for Nunnally's sake" C.C. summarised. Lelouch was a bit surprised at C.C.'s comment. He saw her making herself comfortable on one of the sofas, and grew slightly annoyed.

"If you understand then you wouldn't mind if I left now, right?" Lelouch said, wanting to leave the room. With a twirl of her finger C.C. closed the door and sealed it with a spell. "I saw that there was no guards outside. Don't you think you were a bit too lax with security?"

"Come now, Lelouch, do you think that I do not know the properties of my own magic spell?"

"Magic spell?"

"That's right. Back at the clearing in the forest, I used a spell to make you come along quietly. I know that my spell is only effective for a certain amount of hours, so I came here when I knew my spell would wear off" C.C. explained lazily.

"Your estimation is a bit inaccurate then, for I have been awake for a while now" Lelouch said.

"Yes well, I had to wait for the pizza to finish baking in the over. Otherwise I would have been here sooner."

"Could a normal guard not have been just as effective? Why did they send you here?"

"I offered to come here. Naturally they allowed me too, for what better way to contain you than with magic? It be much more effective than a shield and sword, I'd say" C.C. quipped.

"Why would you want to guard me?" Lelouch asked, genuinely puzzled. He could not figure out that woman's motives. C.C. grew quiet, pausing between bites of pizza. She resumed then a split-second later, but it was long enough for Lelouch to notice the pause.

"Do you want a slice of pizza?" she asked casually

"Don't change the subject! I doubt that someone like you would ever share their pizza with any one anyway!" Lelouch pointed out.

"That is too bad. Here I thought I could get you to eat this pizza slice which I spiked with sleeping powder especially for you. Now I have to stay here and personally keep guard over you myself!" C.C. whined sarcastically.

"Enough joking around. I know that's not the real reason"

"Not the only 'real reason' anyway" she said, placing the pizza box on the coffee table. Lelouch went and stood at the other side of the coffee table. He crossed his arms around his chest and waited for C.C. to continue. "The matter concerns your dear little sister…"

* * *

The cool wind of the early morning hours blew through Suzaku's hair as he reclined against one of the cabin's walls. It wasn't long before he and a few other men in the housing area would move out to the castle for guard duty. Putting his hand in his pocket, Suzaku looked up at the many stars donning the night sky. It was so similar to that night.

_I think it is better for you not to become more involved in this. Even if only because you don't want to get hurt by me and the vi Britannia clan anymore." _Suzaku remembered Lelouch's words to him that night.

"That selfish bast*rd" Suzaku grumbled under his breath. After trying but failing many times not to think about Lelouch , Suzaku gave up. _'He cannot up and decided to leave me like that without giving me the oppurtunity to say something. Well, I guess I was too stunned then to say anything anyway, but still…'_

"Reveling in dismay, Suzaku?" a deep voice asked.

Suzaku spun to his left, surprised that someone addressed him on his name. Five guards stood before him. For a moment Suzaku feared that someone he had caught him, until he recognized the man who was obviously the unit's leader. It was the intimidating man who Suzaku and Lelouch gave information at the port town of Agulhas. Suzaku recalled that Tohdoh was the man's name.

"How do you know my name?" Suzaku asked.

"You might not remember me, but I certainly remember you. You, the son of the village chief, Genbu"

"You knew my father?" Suzaku asked, on guard.

"Yes. I was once a close friend and subordinate of his. And you, you might have been too young to remember, but I thought you the ways of the sword."

Suzaku stared disbelieving at the man before looking down at his sword. Suzaku closed his eyes and tried to remember, but could only remember was that fateful day when everything burned.

"I'm sorry; all I can ever remember is that day…"

"Don't apologize" Tohdoh stopped his former pupil. "Use the resentment that the past etched into your being to fuel your rage in the present"

"What…?"

"No matter how many moons pass, I also cannot forget. However there was not one day when I did not think about the day where vengeance would be mine!"

"Hey…"

"The ideal opportunity has presented itself to us! Tomorrow we will enact our revenge on everyone in the Dragon clan!"

"Hey, wait..."

"So join us, Suzaku!"

"I said wait, damn*t!" Suzaku raised his voice. Everyone stared at him in confusion. _'Darn it!' _Suzaku cursed internally when he realised that he let his tongue slip. Now everyone was likely to suspect him.

"Suzaku?" Tohdoh inquired.

"Oh no, it's just that I...uh... I have already made my own plans on how I will approach the royal family and the Battle Royale tomorrow, so I won't be joining you"

'_I have to keep it a secret that Lelouch is a prince and that he indirectly caused the destruction of our village eight years ago'_ Suzaku reminded himself. Lelouch already had enough people after his head; he didn't need another man with a vendetta after him.

"Oh?" Tohdoh raised his eyebrow at Suzaku. "I feel you have something that you are not telling us. If it is additional information that will aid us in our mission please do not hesitate to inform us"

"No! I have nothing of the sort!"

Tohdoh narrowed his eyes at Suzaku, disbelieving. "You're lying" Tohdoh said and instantly pulled out his sword and swiped at Suzaku. Using his natural reflexes Suzaku managed to defend himself just in time. "When I defeat you, you will tell me what information you are hiding" Tohdoh stated and swung at Suzaku once more. Suzaku blocked the strike and jumped back.

"Like I said, I have nothing to hide" Suzaku tried to explain while continuously being pushed back by Tohdoh.

"If your swordplay is poor like this, then it is no wonder you couldn't protect your master from being separated from you" Tohdoh quipped.

"What did you say? That had nothing to do with my fighting skills. Do not talk about things you know nothing about!" Suzaku shot back. He struck with his swords a few times.

"So you believe you can still save him?" Tohdoh asked, dodging every one of Suzaku's strikes.

"Of course! I still have a mission to protect Lelouch, and I don't intend to stop until I have completed that mission! Until then I am still his knight!" Suzaku proclaimed as he blocked one of Tohdoh's own strikes.

With force he pushed Tohdoh back and went in with another strike. Tohdoh dodged the strike. The blade missed Tohdoh's face by a margin. Both Suzaku and Tohdoh moved in to attack at the same time. The swords reflected the moon's light every time they made contact, blinding the spectators. The dance of blades ensued until, with Suzaku's final breath, he was able to sidestep Tohdoh and, ducking underneath, aimed his sword to pierce Suzaku's side. He stopped just before the tip of the blade drew blood, as he felt his own back in severe danger with Tohdoh's sword perfectly poised to strike from above.

"Cut, cut, cut! I say that's a wrap, people!" Tamaki stepped forward, waving his hands in a conceding way.

"Tamaki's right, you two" Ohgi stepped in. "Let's call it a draw".

Suzaku and Tohdoh looked at each other, and simultaneously came to an unspoken agreement that neither have them have achieved victory nor suffered defeat.

"Judging on your performance in this match, I have come to two possible conclusions; either this Lelouch is worthy of Suzaku's respect, or that the days the son of Genbu had spent in the wilderness had completely clouded his judgement." Tohdoh concluded

"I wonder" Suzaku admitted "I will only know the answer tomorrow.

"Do what you will, but be sure to show me your answer tomorrow" was the message Tohdoh left before he and his men disappeared into the barracks.

'_Today is sure to be_ _a spectacle' _Suzaku thought as he looked up at the every lightening sky.

* * *

**A/N: **Hey guys, thank you for reading! I'm sorry for the heavy delay in updating, but I did give you the longest chapter yet! Even though there's not a lot of SuzaLulu in it. I apologize for that!

As the title of this chapter suggested, everything in this chapter was to set up what comes next; the finale which will take place over two chapters! Though I say two chapters now...It might be more, since this chapter didn't even exist until I finished chapter 9. Such are the whims of a writer I suppose… -.-"

I'll be writing exams on the 11th, 14th, 21st and 24th of November, but I'll try to write as much as I can. Otherwise expect the two-part story finale to be published by the end of November/ early December.

Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers; **yuuram2fangirl** (thank you, you gave me an idea ^^) **InsanePurpleLove** (Haha somehow...), **Katkatw1luv** (I'm glad you like it), **A Random Person** (Sorry for the wait! And yes, I will be writing another fic. I may even write a sequel for this story...but I have another fic planned, so look forward to it!), **Deidara4ever** (Thanks for understanding and for answering my question ^^) & **crazy anko** (Yeah it's slow but a lot of stuff is happening and still has to happen. Sorry that there wasn't much Suzululu in this. From the next chapter on there will be more scenes with the two of them together!)

Edit: Thank you to Guest who have pointed out to me that Sayaka is suppose to be Sayoko. And I call myself a Code Geass writer...I am so ashamed! But that is one of the reasons why reviewers are so great. You guys see things that I miss. I apologize for my mistake. Thank you again, Guest!

**P.S.** If you have any request for how you want the story to end, now is the time! I'll try my best to come up with the most suitable ending! Thanks, Hasuki-chan.


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